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ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


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THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

NEW  YORK    •    BOSTON    •    CHICAGO    •    DALLAS 
ATLANTA    •    SAN  FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN  &  CO..  Limited 

LONDON    •    BOMBAY    •    CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OP  CANADA.  Ltd. 

TORONTO 


ACTUAL    BUSINESS 
ENGLISH 


BY 

P.  H.  DEFFENDALL 

SUPERVISOR  OF  ENGLISH,  CONTINUATION  SCHOOLS,  ST.  LOUIS,  MO. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 


1922 

All  rights  reserved 


PRINTEl)'  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA 


Copyright,  1922, 
By  the  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.    Published  July,  1922 


MA(«i  t  .^.«,^    ^  3ir»CULTU«« 


OKP-4 


Press  of 

J.  J.  Little  &  Ives  Company 

New  York,  U.  S.  A. 


EDITOR'S    INTRODUCTION 

For  more  than  a  generation,  authors  of  text  books  on 
English  have  called  their  books  by  the  title  Business 
English.  So  far  as  I  know,  no  one  previous  to  Mr.  Def- 
fendall  has  dared  actually  to  do  what  is  implied  in  the 
title. 

In  Actual  Business  English  every  illustrative  sentence 
is  taken  from  business;  every  usage  recommended  is  a 
business  usage;  every  modern  detail  taught  is  a  detail  nec- 
essary to  business  letter  writing;  and  every  antiquated  de- 
tail ignored  is  a  detail  that  the  business  office  of  today  also 
ignores. 

The  usual  text  labeled  Business  English  begins  with 
illustrations  taken  from  the  classics,  and  ends  with  them. 
This  book  is  different.  Mr.  Deffendall's  sentences  and 
paragraphs  come  hot  from  Wanamaker,  Packard,  Good- 
year, and  others  who  pay  men  to  do  what  Mr.  Deffendall 
is  trying  to  train  the  student  to  do.  No  such  sentences  as 
"The  lowing  herds  wind  slowly  o'er  the  lea,"  appear  in  his 
work.  This  is  not  because  such  sentences  are  not  beauti- 
ful and  correct,  but  because  *'The  growing  company  moved 
into  a  new  building,"  suits  Mr.  Deffendall's  purpose  bet- 
ter, and  has  a  stronger  appeal  to  enthusiastic  commercial 
students.  That  the  author  has  actually  done  what  his 
title  promises,  is  the  first  thing  that  stands  out  from  the 
pages  of  this  book. 

494239 


VI  EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

The  second  really  notable  thing  Mr.  DefiFendall  has  done 
is  scientifically  to  select  and  arrange  the  common  errors  of 
speech  with  the  corrected  forms.  These  errors  are  no 
mere  hodge-podge  of  incorrect  phrases  presented  for  hap- 
hazard study.  With  careful,  painstaking  scholarship,  the 
author  has  compiled  lists  of  the  common  vulgarisms,  col- 
loquialisms, and  grammatical  blunders  of  American  speech. 
He  has  used  Dr.  Charters'  Study  of  Pupils'  Errors^  and 
other  similar  studies,  besides  a  list  of  his  own,  gathered 
from  years  of  experience  as  an  instructor  in  English. 

There  is  much  that  is  true  in  the  old  saying  that  to  cor- 
rect a  man's  grammatical  errors  you  must  begin  with  his 
grandparents.  If  young  people  constantly  hear  ungram- 
matical  language  at  home,  the  teacher  can  do  little  for 
them.  But  as  much  as  a  teacher  can  do,  the  author  has 
done  in  this  book.  He  has  given  the  most  carefully  se- 
lected list  of  such  errors  that  has  ever  been  compiled;  he 
has  shown  the  correct  forms;  he  has,  when  necessary,  ex- 
plained the  reasons  for  these  correct  forms;  and  in  all  cases, 
he  has  demanded  practice  of  the  pupil  and  has  put  him  to 
a  test  in  an  exercise  at  the  end  of  the  same  lesson.  More- 
over, he  has  presented  each  error  at  the  exact  time  when  in 
the  student's  progress  it  can  best  be  corrected — that  is, 
when  the  preceding  lesson  or  lessons  have  shown  the  cor- 
rect usage  in  the  specific  case  that  is  being  studied. 

Few  texts  present  for  correction  so  well  chosen  a  list  of 
habitual  errors.  No  other  text  presents  them  in  so  scien- 
tific and  systematic  a  manner.  It  is  likely  that  Mr.  Def- 
fendall's  success  in  this  connection  is  due  to  his  realization 
that  the  number  of  such  errors  is  small,  as  has  been  clearly 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION  vii 

shown  by  a  scientific  analysis  of  them  through  a  period  of 
years. 

The  teaching  of  correct  English,  which  is  the  main  ob- 
ject of  the  book,  is  preceded  by  a  review  and  restatement 
of  the  essentials  of  grammar,  in  which  that  dread  study  is 
stripped  of  the  compHcated  rules  that  modern  instruction 
has  shown  to  be  unnecessary.  What  is  given  of  grammar 
is  the  part  that  is  vital  to  correct  English  as  required  by 
the  modern  business  office.  What  is  omitted  is  the  vast, 
compHcated  machinery  of  hair-splitting  rules  and  their  still 
more  intricate  exceptions.  For  the  practical  purposes  of 
every-day  speech,  these  are  shown  by  the  author  to  be  un- 
necessary, for  he  has  accompUshed  his  purpose  without 
them. 

The  art  of  putting  correct  words  together  in  sensible 
sentences  begins  with  the  study  of  the  word  and  then  pro- 
ceeds through  the  study  of  the  sentence,  the  paragraph, 
and  the  whole  composition.  By  a  gradual  process,  Mr. 
Deffendall  skillfully  brings  the  student  up  to  the  study  of 
letter  writing,  leaving  him  prepared  for  definite  and  posi- 
tive progress  toward  the  mastery  of  that  well-paid  accom- 
pHshment. 

His  treatment  of  punctuation,  one  mark  at  a  time,  is  as 
simple  and  thorough  as  his  handling  of  the  problem  of  the 
correct  word. 

Unity,  clearness,  and  emphasis  are  taught  as  well  as  cor- 
rectness. The  writer's  aim  has  been  to  teach  the  student 
to  write  material  that  wins,  the  kind  of  plain  writing  that 
has  force,  that  sells  goods,  that  explains  difficulties,  that 
admits  of  no  misunderstandings,  that  gets  results.     All 


viii  EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

topics  for  the  student's  written  work  are  drawn  from  real 
business  situations.  All  the  terms  that  are  used  are  cor- 
rect, modern  business  terms. 

The  book  is  clear,  forcible,  brief,  and  comprehensive.  It 
is  for  the  average  person  who  wants  to  learn  to  use  busi- 
ness English  effectively.  Its  slogan  is  '' Business  Usage." 
Its  method  is  direct  instruction  with  suitable  exercises  ap- 
pHed  to  each  step.  It  is,  as  its  title  implies.  Actual  Busi- 
ness English. 

Harlan  Eugene  Read. 


CONTENTS 

LESSON  PAGE 

I  A  Necessary  First  Step i 

II  The  Formation  of  Plurals 7 

III  The  Formation  of  the  Possessive    ....  11 

IV  Nouns  Commonly  Confused 14 

V  How  TO  Use  the  Personal  Pronouns  Correctly  19 

VI  How  TO  Use  the  Pronouns  Correctly   (Con- 
tinued)        24 

VII  How  TO  Use  the  Pronouns  Correctly  (Con- 
tinued)        26 

VIII  Relative  Pronouns 30 

IX  Troublesome  Verbs 34 

X  Troublesome  Verbs  (Continued)   .....  40 

XI  Speclal  Use  of  Were 43 

.     XII  Shall  and  Will 45 

XIII  Agreement 49 

XIV  Agreement  (Continued) 53 

XV  Verbs  Commonly  Confused 56 

XVI  Adjectives  and  Adverbs 62 

XVII  Adjectives  and  Adverbs  (Continued)      ...  67 

XVIII  Confusion  of  Adjectives  and  Adverbs  ...  70 

XIX  Comparison 75 

XX  Similar  Adjectives  and  Adverbs  Distinguished  79 

XXI  How  TO  Use  Prepositions  Correctly     ...  87 

XXII  How  TO  Use  Conjunctions  Correctly   ...  93 

XXIII  Sentence  Structure:   The  Simple  Sentence   .  97 

XXIV  Sentence  Structure:    The  Complex  Sentence  iot 
XXV  Sentence  Structure:  The  Compound  Sentence  104 

XXVI  Punctuation 107 

XXVII  Punctuation  (Continued) .  iii 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

XXVIII  Punctuation  (Continued) ii6 

XXIX  Punctuation  (Continued) 119 

XXX  Special  Cases  of  Punctuation 125 

XXXI  Capitalization 132 

XXXII  Abbreviations 137 

XXXIII  Unity  of  the  Sentence 141 

XXXIV  Clearness  in  the  Sentence 147 

XXXV  Emphasis  in  the  Sentence 152 

XXXVI  The  Paragraph 162 

XXXVII  Unity  of  the  Paragraph 169 

XXXVIII  Clearness  in  the  Paragraph 173 

XXXIX  Emphasis  in  the  Paragraph 180 

XL  The  Whole  Composition .  186 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

LESSON  ONE 
A  Necessary  First  Step 

Business  English  —  what  is  it?  Hardly  different  indeed 
from  any  other  English  except  in  its  application  to  business 
forms,  customs,  and  usages.  Once  quite  technical  and  legal 
in  expression,  it  is  now  becoming  simpler,  more  direct,  and 
more  personal. 

One  of  the  chief  requisites  for  success  in  business  is  the 
ability  to  speak  and  write  correct  and  effective  English. 
What  chance  of  success,  for  example,  has  the  salesman  who 
says  ''I  ain't,"  ''I  seen,"  and  *' between  you  and  I"?  You 
would  neither  respect  him  nor  have  confidence  in  his  ability. 
As  a  commercial  asset,  the  study  of  business  English  is  of  the 
utmost  importance. 

In  the  following  lessons  you  will  study  good  English  usage 
and  will  be  required  to  apply  your  knowledge  of  it  in  care- 
fully selected  drills  and  exercises.  As  a  necessary  first  step, 
however,  you  should  review  briefly  the  parts  of  speech. 

the  parts  of  speech 

A  noun  is  the  name  of  a  person,  place,  or  thing — as,  Mar- 
shall  Field,  California,  pencil.  A  noun  may  also  name  an 
idea,  a  quality,  or  an  action.  Such  names  as  beauty,  noise^ 
odor,  and  pain  express  ideas  that  one  gains  through  the 
senses.    Names  of  qualities  include  such  words  as  honesty. 


2     '  '"'       *  ['AtrttTAL  JBUSINESS  ENGLISH 

' hap'piht's^,'  faitk,  'ptrsever'ance,  etc.,  while  names  of  actions 
comprise  hundreds  of  words  Hke  counting,  filing,  writing. 
A  pronoun  is  a  word  that  is  used  instead  of  a  noun. 
Pronouns  are  classified  as  follows: 

Personal  pronouns:   /,  you,  he,  she,  it,  we  and  they. 

Relative  pronouns:   who,  which,  that,  and  what. 

Interrogative  pronouns:   who,  which,  and  what. 

Demonstrative  pronouns:  this  and  that,  and  the  plurals  these 
and  those. 

Indefinite  pronouns:  one,  any,  anyone,  someone,  none,  each, 
both,  another,  etc. 

Reciprocal  pronouns:   each  other,  one  another. 

Compound  personal  pronouns:  myself,  ourselves,  yourself,  your- 
selves, himself,  herself,  themselves,  and  itself. 

A  verb  is  a  word  that  asserts  —  as,  "  Business  men  work.^^ 
Sometimes  a  group  of  words,  called  a  verb  phrase,  is  used 
to  make  an  assertion.  Such  a  phrase  consists  of  a  prin- 
cipal verb  and  one  or  more  helping  words,  called  auxiliary 
verbs.  The  auxiHary  verbs  include  the  various  forms  of 
the  verbs  be  (is,  am,  are,  was,  were,  has  been,  have  been), 
may,  can,  must,  might,  could,  would,  should,  will,  shall,  ought, 
have,  do,  and  did.  The  following  sentences  contain  verb 
phrases : 

1.  Your  order  will  receive  prompt  attention. 

2.  We  shall  he  glad  to  hear  from  you  in  a  few  days. 

3.  Our  draft  has  been  returned. 

An  adjective  is  a  word  that  modifies  a  noun  or  a  pro- 
noun. An  adjective  that  limits  the  meaning  of  a  noun  or 
a  pronoun  is  called  a  limiting  adjective  —  as,  this,  that 
{these,  those),  all,  each,  either,  few,  etc.    The  articles  a,  an, 


A  NECESSARY  FIRST  STEP  3 

and  the  belong  to  this  class.  An  adjective  that  describes 
the  object  named  by  a  noun  or  pronoun  or  expresses  the 
kind  or  condition  of  the  object  is  a  descriptive  adjective  — 
as,  beautiful,  good-,  tall. 

An  adverb  is  a  word  that  modifies  a  verb,  an  adjective, 
or  another  adverb.  The  following  sentences  contain  ad- 
verbs: 

1.  You  are  cordially  invited  to  be  present  at  a  Private  Exhibi- 

tion of  our  new  spring  hats. 

2.  We  were  extremely  sorry  to  learn  from  your  letter  of  April  4 

that  the  table  was  damaged. 

3.  We  will  very  gladly  take  back  the  two  coats. 

An  adverb  answers  the  question  when?  where?  why?  how? 
how  many?  or  how  much?  The  words  how,  when,  where, 
and  why  are  sometimes  used  in  asking  questions,  and  in 
such  cases  are  called  interrogative  adverbs. 

A  preposition  is  a  word  that  is  used  to  show  the  relation 
between  a  noun  or  a  pronoun  and  some  other  word  in  the 
sentence  —  as,  "  Our  draft  of  November  10  has  been  re- 
turned to  us.''  The  noun  or  pronoun  following  the  prepo- 
sition is  called  its  object.  Thus  us  is  the  object  of  to  in  the 
foregoing  sentence. 

A  conjunction  is  a  word  that  connects  words,  phrases,  or 
clauses.     These  sentences  illustrate  the  three  uses: 

1.  Manufacturers  and  wholesalers  allow  credits  varying  from 

ten  to  ninety  days. 

2.  The  business  envelope  bears  in  its  upper  left-hand  corner  or 

on  the  flap  the  name  and  address  of  the  house. 

3.  Some  business  houses  prefer  to  have  all  letters  single  spaced, 

hut  others  prefer  to  have  them  double  spaced. 


4  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

This  discussion  would  scarcely  be  complete  without  a 
brief  discussion  of  verbals.  It  is  necessary,  first  of  all,  to 
distinguish  between  the  verb  and  the  verbal.  Take,  for 
example,  the  verb  write.  It  has  the  forms  write,  writes, 
wrote,  writing,  and  written.  Not  all  of  these  forms  are  verbs, 
since  some  of  them  do  not  assert.  The  words  written  and 
writing  do  not  make  assertions  by  themselves.  They  are 
verbals.    A  verbal  is  a  form  of  the  verb  that  does  not  assert. 

There  are  three  classes  of  verbals;  namely,  infinitives, 
participles,  and  gerunds. 

An  infinitive  is  a  verbal  having  the  root  form  of  the 
verb  and  performing  the  office  of  a  noun,  an  adjective,  or  an 
adverb. 

1.  To  write  clearly  is  a  great  accomplishment.     (Used  as  a  noun.) 

2.  Our  superintendent  is  a  man  to  admire.     (Used  as  an  adjec- 

tive modifier  of  man.) 

3.  The  manager  called  to  see  me.     (Used  as  an  adverb,  answer- 

ing the  question  Why?) 

Common  forms  of  the  infinitive  include  such  as  to  write, 
to  he  written,  to  have  written,  to  have  been  written. 

A  participle  is  a  verbal  not  having  the  root  form  of  the 
verb  and  performing  the  office  of  an  adjective. 

1.  Standing  near  the  stenographer's  desk,  the  superintendent 

dictated  the  letter. 

2.  The  company,  having  refused  to  accept  the  return  of  the  goods, 

lost  a  valuable  customer. 

Common  forms  of  the  participle  include  such  as  writing, 
being  written,  having  written,  having  been  written,  and  written. 

A  gerund  is  a  verbal  having  the  ending  ing  and  perform- 
ing the  office  of  a  noun. 


A  NECESSARY  FIRST  STEP  5 

1.  Rendering  additional  credit  would  be  unwise. 

2.  His  taking  up  the  matter  promptly  with  the  railroad  company- 

hastened  the  delivery  of  the  shipment. 

Like  a  verb,  an  infinitive,  participle,  or  gerund  may 
take  the  usual  adverbial  modifiers  or  an  object. 

It  is  the  way  in  which  a  word  is  used  in  the  sentence 
that  determines  what  part  of  speech  it  is.  For  example, 
in  reply  to  a  letter  ordering  goods,  you  may  say,  "  Your 
order  of  June  lo  has  been  received."  In  this  sentence  order 
is  a  noun.  The  case  is  different,  however,  in  the  following: 
"  We  frequently  order  goods  from  other  houses."  Here  it  is 
a  verb.  Again,  a  word  may  be  an  adjective  in  one  sen- 
tence and  an  adverb  in  another.  In  the  sentence,  "  Kindly 
make  shipment  by  fast  freight,"  fast  is  an  adjective.  It  is, 
however,  an  adverb  when  used  as  follows:  "  The  truck  was 
driven  so  fast  that  the  stove  was  broken." 

To  determine  what  part  of  speech  a  word  is,  therefore, 
you  must  answer  the  question, How  is  it  used  in  the  sentence? 

It  will  be  necessary  also  in  this  lesson  to  review  briefly 
sentence,  clause,  and  phrase. 

A  sentence  is  the  expression  of  a  complete  thought  in 
words.  The  simplest  sentence  must  necessarily  have  a 
subject,  the  word  or  expression  that  names  the  person, 
thing,  idea,  quality,  or  action  about  which  an  assertion 
is  made,  and  a  predicate,  the  word  or  words  that  say 
something  about  the  subject.  In  the  sentence,  "  The 
customer  paid  cash  for  the  goods,"  the  subject  is  The  cus- 
tomer and  the  predicate  paid  cash  for  the  goods,  of  which  paid 
is  the  verb.  Some  sentences  also  contain  an  object,  that 
is,  a  word  or  group  of  words  that  completes  the  meaning  of 


6  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

the  verb  and  tells  what  is  acted  upon,  —  as,  ''The  sales- 
man broke  his  pencil. ^^  Here  pencil  is  the  object  of  broke. 
Simple  sentences  become  more  complex  as  modifiers  — 
words,  phrases,  and  clauses  —  are  added. 

A  phrase  is  a  group  of  words  that  does  not  have  a  sub- 
ject and  predicate.  It  generally  consists  of  a  preposition 
and  its  object,  or  of  an  infinitive  or  participle  and  its  ob- 
ject.   The  following  sentences  contain  phrases: 

1.  The  president  of  the  company  resigned. 

2.  The  man  wanted  to  study  salesmanship. 

3.  The  bond,  torn  to  pieces,  was  found  in  the  waste  basket. 

A  clause  is  a  group  of  words  that  has  a  subject  and  predi- 
cate. A  principal,  or  independent,  clause  is  one  that  makes 
an  assertion.  A  subordinate,  or  dependent,  clause  is  one 
that  is  used  as  a  modifier  of  a  word  in  the  principal  clause. 
The  following  sentences  contain  both  principal  and  subordi- 
nate clauses: 

1.  An  electrician  who  was  graduated  from  the  Ranken  Trade 

School  was  employed  to  do  the  work. 

2.  //  you  can  operate  the  diferent  office  machines  skillfully,  you 

should  be  able  to  secure  employment  without  difficulty. 

3.  We  understand  that  orders  have  fallen  ojff  greatly  during  the 

past  month. 


LESSON  TWO 

The  Formation  of  Plurals 

A  careful  examination  of  a  bundle  of  discarded  business 
letters  revealed  a  number  of  flagrant  errors  in  the  forma- 
tion of  plurals.  Fortunately,  these  mistakes  were  of  only 
a  few  kinds.  By  far  the  greatest  number  was  found  in 
the  use  of  certain  words  that  every  successful  stenographer 
or  bookkeeper  should  know.  In  this  lesson,  then,  you  will 
be  required  to  study  only  those  forms  that  will  likely  be 
useful  in  your  future  work. 

In  general,  nouns  form  their  plurals  by  the  addition  of 
5  or  es  to  the  singular. 

Nouns  ending  in  y  preceded  by  a  consonant  change  y  to 
i  and  add  es.  The  word  lady,  belonging  to  this  class,  seems 
to  cause  more  trouble  than  almost  any  other.  You  may 
rightly  say  a  lady^s  hat,  or  even  a  lady^s  hats,  if  you  are 
thinking  of  but  one  person;  but  if  you  are  thinking  of 
more  than  one,  you  should  write  ladies^  hats. 

Most  nouns  ending  in  /  or  fe  change  f  to  v  and  add 
es  —  as,  knife,  knives;  shelf,  shelves.  There  are,  however, 
a  few  belonging  to  this  class  that  add  merely  s.  As 
they  are  very  frequently  used,  you  should  make  an  effort 
to  remember  them.  The  chief  ones  are  brief,  chief,  gulf, 
proof,  and  scarf. 

Nouns  ending  in  o  cause  much  trouble.  Perhaps  this 
simple  rule  will  help  a  great  deal:  If  a  consonant  precedes 
the  0,  add  es  —  as,  cargo,  cargoes;  potato,  potatoes.  There 
are  of  course  some  exceptions  which  must  be  carefully  com- 
mitted to  memory.     These  include  the  following:  solos, 

7 


8  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

albinos,  banjos,  dynamos,  pianos,  porticos,  provisos,  tobaccos, 
twos,  zeros. 

Compound  nouns  cause  little  difficulty,  and  need  cause 
none  if  you  remember  that  each  consists  of  two  parts  —  a 
principal  word  and  a  word  or  words  that  describe  the  prin- 
cipal word.  All  that  is  required,  therefore,  is  that  you  make 
the  principal  word  plural  —  as,  car-loads,  brothers-in-law. 

In  compounds  written  solid  —  that  is,  without  a  hyphen 

—  make  the  ending  plural  —  as,  bucketfuls,  cupfuls,  hand- 
fuls,  spoonfuls.  If,  however,  you  desire  to  say  that  there 
is  more  than  one  bucket  or  cup,  you  should  write  the  ex- 
pressions thus:  buckets  full,  cups  full,  etc. 

Occasionally  you  will  want  to  use  the  plural  of  a  letter, 
figure,  or  sign.  In  this  case  merely  add  the  apostrophe 
and  s  —  as,  Fs,  5'^,  $'s. 

In  correspondence  you  will  doubtless  be  puzzled  at  times 
to  know  how  to  form  the  plural  when  titles  are  involved. 
For  example,  how  should  you  write  the  plural  of  Miss 
Brown?  If  you  will  examine  the  work  of  careful  writers, 
you  will  find  that  almost  all  of  them  make  the  title  plural 

—  as.  The  Misses  Brown.  To  form  the  plural  of  military 
titles  you  should  generally  add  5  at  the  last  —  as,  major 
generals.  In  the  case  of  civil  titles,  however,  you  should 
generally  add  5  to  the  first  part  —  as,  attorneys  general. 

In  writing  the  salutation  of  a  letter  addressed  to  several 
women,  single  or  married,  you  may  be  puzzled  to  know  just 
what  is  the  required  plural.  There  is  indeed  no  English 
plural  for  madam;  so  we  have  borrowed  mesdames  from 
the  French.  Remember,  however,  that  dear  is  not  used 
with  mesdames. 


THE  FORMATION  OF  PLURALS  9 

The  words  goods,  assets,  and  proceeds  are  used  frequently 
in  business.  They  always  require  plural  verbs.  Remem- 
ber to  say,  "  The  goods  are  damaged,"  "  The  company's 
assets  are  greater  than  its  HabiHties,"  and  "  The  proceeds 
of  the  sale  were  one  hundred  dollars,  "  not  "  The  goods  is 
damaged,"  "  The  company's  assets  is  greater  than  its  lia- 
bilities," and  "  The  proceeds  of  the  sale  was  one  hun- 
dred dollars." 

The  names  of  certain  sciences  —  physics,  ethics,  and 
mathematics  —  end  in  s,  but  they  are  nevertheless  singular. 
They  are  no  more  plural  than  Charles  and  James.  Note 
that  they  require  a  singular  verb  —  thus : 

Mathematics  is  sl  study  helpful  to  a  bookkeeper. 
Business  ethics  was  studied  by  every  member  of  the  firm. 

The  expressions  two  dozen,  three  score,  four  yoke,  etc.,  are 
very  often  used.  Remember  that  dozen,  score,  yoke,  and 
a  few  other  words  of  this  kind  do  not  require  the  addition 
of  5  when  preceded  by  a  numeral.  In  order  letters  the 
word  pair  is  sometimes  used  instead  of  pairs.  This  is 
incorrect.  The  word  pairs  should  always  be  used  —  as, 
three  pairs  of  socks. 

A  few  foreign  nouns  still  retain  their  old  plurals.  Where 
new  plurals  have  been  adopted,  these  are  formed  in  the 
regular  way,  and  you  need  spend  no  time  on  them.  For 
example,  memorandums  is  the  new  plural  of  memorandum. 

The  following  foreign  forms  should  be  carefully  learned: 

addendum      an  addition  addenda 

alumnus        a  graduate  of  a  school  or    alumni  (masculine) 
college 


lO 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 


alumna  a  graduate  of  a  school  or 

college 
a  division  into  parts 
a  decisive  moment 
a  fact  or  principle  on  which 

an  inference  is  based 
a  mistake  in  printing  or 

writing 
a  French  title  correspond- 
ing to  the  English  Mr. 
parenthesis     one  of  the  curved  marks 
in  punctuation  (      ) 
an  unusual  occurrence 
a  brief  outline  of  main 
points 


analysis 

crisis 

datum 

erratum 

monsieur 


phenomenon 
synopsis 


alumnae  (feminine) 

analyses 

crises 

data 

errata 

messieurs 

parentheses 

phenomena 
synopses 


LESSON  THREE 

The  Formation  of  the  Possessive 

A  young  woman  recently  sent  an  order  letter  in  which 
she  had  written  "  2  doz.  lady's  handkerchiefs  "  and  "  3  pairs 
of  childrens'  rompers."  These  expressions  correctly  writ- 
ten are,  of  course,  "  2  doz.  ladies'  handkerchiefs,"  and 
"  3  pairs  of  children's  rompers."  Evidently  her  mistake 
was  due  to  her  failure  to  understand  the  formation  of  the 
plural  possessive.  In  order  to  avoid  such  errors  it  is  neces- 
sary to  remember  at  least  two  rules. 

Ordinarily,  the  possessive  singular  is  formed  by  adding 
the  apostrophe  and  5  —  as,  "the  company^s  capital  stock." 
When  the  addition  of  s  produces  a  hissing  sound,  however, 
a  few  writers  would  add  only  the  apostrophe  —  as,  ''Burns^ 
works,"  "Dickens'  novels."  But  the  tendency  is  to  follow 
the  rule  —  writing  '^Burns^s  works,"  ^'Charles^s  books," 
"  the  witnesses  testimony,"  and  "  the  countesses  jewels"  — 
and  this  contention  is  supported  by  such  authorities  as 
Hitchcock,  Manly,  Baskerville  and  Sewell,  and  the  Style 
Book  of  the  Government  Printing  Office. 

The  possessive  plural  is  formed  by  adding  only  the  apos- 
trophe to  plural  nouns  ending  in  s.  Thus  you  should  write 
''ladies'  gloves,"  %oys'  suits,"  ''misses'  coats,"  and  "citi- 
zens' league." 

To  plural  nouns  not  ending  in  5,  add,  usually,  both  the 
apostrophe  and  s.  According  to  this  rule  you  should  write 
"wew'5  clothing,"  "women's  low  shoes,"  and  "children's 
dresses." 

First  decide  whether  you  need  a  singular  or  a  plural 


12  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

noun.  Then  make  sure  you  can  spell  the  required  form 
correctly,  omitting  for  the  time  being  the  sign  of  the  pos- 
sessive. Having  done  this,  you  are  ready  to  form  the  posses- 
sive. Remember  that  goods  advertised  or  kept  for  sale 
are  intended  for  more  than  one  person;  consequently  you 
should  write  "  ladies^  gloves,"  "  women's  coats,"  "  girls^ 
dresses."  It  is  correct,  however,  to  write  "  a  lady's  glove  " 
or  "  a  woman's  coat "  when  speaking  of  one  person's 
property. 

When  two  or  more  nouns  are  used  together  to  denote 
joint  ownership,  add  the  sign  of  the  possessive  to  the  last 
—  thus : 

Little,  Brown  and  Company's  publications 
Hanly  &  Miller's  law  office 

Should  you  desire  to  express  separate  ownership,  add 
the  sign  of  the  possessive  to  each.  For  example,  write 
"  Haniys  and  Miller's  law  offices." 

The  following  expressions  occur  frequently  in  business, 
and  every  commercial  worker  should  remember  to  use  the 
possessive  form:  * 

a  four  months'  note  sixty  days'  credit 

two  years'  time  two  weeks'  vacation 

a  day's  wages  two  years'  experience 

Sometimes  compound  nouns  prove  troublesome.  Where, 
for  example,  should  the  sign  of  the  possessive  be  placed  in 
such  words  as  brother-in-law?  In  answer  it  should  be  said 
that  all  authorities  agree  that  it  should  be  placed  at  the 
last,  regardless  of  the  part  of  the  word  changed  in  forming 
the  plural  —  thus: 

1  Scott,  Practical  English,  pages  54-55. 


THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  POSSESSIVE  13 

Sing,     brother-in-law  Sing.  poss.    brother-in-law's 

Plu.      brothers-in-law  Plu.  poss.     brothers-in-law's 

Certain  crude  errors  arise  in  the  addition  of  the  pos- 
sessive sign  to  the  pronouns.  Do  not  write  our's,  your^s 
theirs,  his\  her^s,  etc.  These  words  are  already  possessive 
in  form  and  certainly  do  not  need  the  apostrophe.  Simply 
write  ours,  yours,  theirs,  his,  and  hers.  Also  remember  that 
ifs  is  a  contraction  of  it  is  and  that  its  is  the  possessive 
form. 

Always  avoid  awkward  possessive  expressions.  Write 
simple  but  dignified  English,  such  as  is  found  in  the  cor- 
respondence of  reputable  firms.  It  is  not  good  writing, 
for  example,  to  use  the  expression  "  somebody's  else  book '' 
when  ninety-nine  per  cent  of  the  people  say  "  somebody 
else's  book."  The  observance  of  these  principles  should 
make  you  a  better  writer  of  business  English. 


LESSON  FOUR 

Nouns  Commonly  Confused 

This  lesson  treats  of  the  meaning  and  use  of  a  number  of 
words  commonly  misused.  The  words  are  presented  in 
pairs,  and  the  one  point  most  needed  to  insure  the  proper 
use  of  each  is  carefully  stated.  The  definitions  given, 
sometimes  in  full,  are  taken  from  the  New  Standard 
Dictionary,^  and  some  of  the  comments  distinguishing  mean- 
ings are  also  from  this  book.  Study  the  distinctions  in 
meanings  and  the  illustrations  until  you  thoroughly  under- 
stand the  use  of  every  word. 

ABILITY,  CAPACITY 

Ability.  The  state  or  quality  of  being  able;  physical,  mental, 
moral,  or  legal  power;  power  to  plan,  direct,  give,  or  do;  talent; 
faculty,  especially  as  having  reference  to  action. 

Capacity,  i.  The  ability  to  receive  or  contain;  cubic  extent;  car- 
rying power  or  space;  said  of  that  within  which  any  solid  or  fluid  may 
be  placed,  and  also  used  figuratively.  2.  Ability  to  absorb  and  retain; 
as,  heat,  moisture,  electricity,  etc.  3.  Adequate  mental  power  to  re- 
ceive, understand,  endure,  or  develop;  measure  of  such  ability;  tal- 
ent; especially  passive  power.  4.  Productive  power  in  general; 
capability  —  as,  "Fire  has  an  immense  capacity  for  destructiveness." 
5.  Specific  position  or  relation  —  as,  "He  traveled  in  the  capacity  of 
tutor." 

This  distinction  should  be  kept  carefully  in  mind;  namely,  abil- 
ity means  power  or  skill  to  do  a  thing,  while  capacity  means  the  power 
to  receive  and  retain  knowledge.  Capacity  implies  aptness  and  talent 
for  learning  and  planning. 

1,  An  office  manager  should  possess  ability  to  handle  men. 

2.  An  engineer  must  have  capacity  for  mathematics. 

^  Copyright  by  Funk  and  Wagnalls  Company,  New  York  and  London. 

14 


NOUNS   COMMONLY  CONFUSED  15 

ADMITTANCE,  ADMISSION 

Admittance.  The  act  of  admitting  or  the  state  or  fact  of  being 
admitted;  entrance;  or  the  right  or  permission  to  enter. 

Admission,  i.  The  act  of  admitting,  or  the  state  of  being  ad- 
mitted, as  to  some  place,  society,  office,  etc.;  the  right  or  power  of 
approach  or  entrance;  entrance  —  as,  admission  into  a  room,  ad- 
mission of  air.  2.  A  conceding,  acknowledging,  or  confessing,  or 
that  which  is  acknowledged  or  conceded  —  as,  admission  of  guilt. 
3.  The  price  charged  or  paid  to  be  admitted. 

Admittance  means  the  gaining  of  entrance;  admission ^  the  gaining 
of  entrance  together  with  certain  favors  or  privileges.  We  rightly 
say  "Admission,  one  dollar"  and  "Admission,  free." 

1.  Will  you  please  write  me  stating  fully  the  requirements  for 

admission  to  Brown's  Business  College? 

2.  The  messenger  gained  admittance  to  the  office  and  handed  the 

manager  a  telegram. 

AUDIENCE,  SPECTATORS 

Audience.  An  assembly  of  hearers;  a  gathering  of  persons  to 
Hsten  to  something. 

Spectator.  One  who  beholds  or  looks  on;  an  eye-witness;  also, 
one  present  at  a  spectacle  —  as,  "At  the  royal  approach  the  specta- 
tors cheered." 

1.  The  audience  heard  a  lecture  on  salesmanship. 

2.  A  group  of  business  men  were  interested  spectators  at  the  races. 

BALANCE,  REST,  REMAINDER 

Balance,  i.  A  pair  of  scales;  an  instrument  for  weighing,  es- 
pecially very  delicate,  accurate  weighing,  or  for  measuring  physical 
force.  2.  The  act  of  balancing  or  mentally  comparing  the  qualities 
or  importance  of  two  things.  3.  Com.  (i)  An  equality  between  the 
credit  and  debit  totals  of  an  account.  (2)  The  difference  between 
such  totals;  excess  on  either  side  —  as,  "The  balance  is  $500." 

Rest.  I.  That  which  remains  or  is  left  over.  2.  Those  that  re- 
main;  those  not  included  in  a  given  statement  or  description.    The 


i6  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

word  also  has  the  following  meanings:  i.  The  act  or  state  of  resting. 
2.  Freedom  from  disturbance,  disquiet,  or  uneasiness.  3.  Sleep  as  a 
condition  of  repose.    4.  That  on  which  anything  rests,  lies,  or  leans. 

Remainder.  I. That  which  remains;  something  left  after  a  sub- 
traction; expenditure,  or  passing  over  of  a  part;  a  residue;  remnant. 
2.  That  which  is  left  after  the  subtraction  of  one  quantity  from  an- 
other.   3.  An  estate  in  expectancy. 

To  insure  the  correct  use  of  these  words  it  will  be  necessary  to  re- 
member that  balance  is  a  term  used  in  bookkeeping  and  that  remain- 
der is  not  generally  used  in  speaking  of  persons.  Do  not  use  balance 
in  the  sense  of  rest  or  remainder. 

1.  The  bookkeeper  was  busy  making  up  a  trial  balance. 

2.  We  have  decided  to  keep  the  greater  part  of  the  goods,  but  are 

shipping  the  remainder  by  American  Express. 

3.  When  business  became  dull,  the  company  decided  to  keep  only 

the  best  ones  of  its  employees;  the  rest  of  them  were  dis- 
charged. 

COMMUNICATION,  LETTER 

Communication  is  the  more  general  term  and  may  refer  to  a  letter, 
telegram,  telephone  message,  etc.  It  is  almost  always  better  to  use 
the  more  specific  word  letter.  For  example,  "Your  letter  of  October 
10"  is  better  than  "Your  communication  of  October  10." 

COUNCIL,  COUNSEL 

Council  means  an  assembly;   counsel,  an  adviser,  an  attorney. 

1.  We  shall  employ  experienced  counsel  to  represent  us  before 

the  City  Council. 

2.  Mr.  Young  acted  as  my  counsel  in  business  affairs. 

NEGLECT,  NEGLIGENCE 

Neglect.  I.  The  act  of  neglecting.  Specif,  (i)  Omission  to  do 
something  that  should  be  done;  oversight.  (2)  Omission  to  pay  due 
attention  or  civility;  slight;  disregard.  2.  The  state  of  being  neg- 
lected. 

Negligence,     i.  The  act  of  neglecting,  or  the  quality  that  exhibits 


NOUNS  COMMONLY  CONFUSED  17 

neglect;  habitual  omission  of  that  which  ought  to  be  done;  or  the 
habit  of  omitting  to  do  things,  either  from  carelessness  or  design. 

Negligence  is  often  used  to  denote  the  quality  or  trait  of  character 
of  which  the  act  is  a  manifestation,  or  to  denote  the  habit  of  neglecting 
that  which  ought  to  be  done. 

1.  Our  neglect  to  fill  your  order  promptly  has  no  doubt  caused  you 

great  inconvenience. 

2.  We  assure  you,  however,  that  negligence  is  not  a  characteristic 

of  our  house. 

PARTY,  PERSON 

Party,  i.  Any  one  of  two  or  more  bodies  of  people  contending  for 
antagonistic  or  rival  opinions  or  policies  in  a  community  or  society; 
especially  one  of  the  opposing  political  organizations  striving  for  su- 
premacy in  a  state.  2.  The  action  of  taking  sides  on  a  question  of 
public  policy.  3 .  A  number  or  company  of  persons  assembled  for  some 
purpose;  especially  a  number  gathered  for  amusement;  also,  an  en- 
tertainment to  which  a  number  are  invited.  4.  A  company  constitut- 
ing a  part  of  a  larger  company  or  body,  especially  a  small  company 
of  soldiers  detailed  for  special  service.  5.  Law.  One  of  the  persons, 
natural  or  artificial,  named  on  the  record  in  an  action,  either  as  plain- 
tiff or  defendant;  one  who  is  related  or  united  with  another  or  others 
in  a  contract. 

Party  is  a  legal  term  that  should  not  be  used  in  the  ordinary  sense 
of  person.  It  is  used  most  frequently  in  contracts  —  as,  "The  party 
of  the  first  part.'' 

1.  Our  company  was  made  a  party  to  the  suit. 

2.  Here  is  the  person  who  represents  the  Goodyear  Rubber  Com- 

pany.    (Not  the  party.) 

PRINCIPAL,  PRINCIPLE 

Principal,  i.  One  who  takes  a  leading  part;  one  concerned  di- 
rectly and  not  as  an  auxiliary;  one  who  is  a  leader  or  chief  in  some 
action  —  as,  the  principal  in  a  debate.  Law.  (i)  The  actor  in  a 
crime  or  one  present  aiding  and  abetting.  (2)  The  employer  of  one 
who  acts  as  an  agent.     2.  One  who  is  at  the  head  of  some  body; 


1 8  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

chief;  one  who  is  in  authority.     3.  Property  or  capital,  as  opposed 
to  interest  or  income. 

Principle,  i.  A  source  or  cause  from  which  a  thing  proceeds;  a 
power  that  acts  continuously  or  uniformly.  2.  That  which  is  inher- 
ent in  anything,  determining  its  nature;  essential  character;  essence; 
original  faculty.  3.  A  general  truth  or  proposition.  4.  A  settled 
law  or  rule  of  action. 

1.  The  principal  directed  his  agent  to  buy  certain  goods. 

2.  The  principal  of  the  Burdett  School  has  made  his  institu- 

tion one  of  the  best  in  the  country. 

3.  A  successful  business  man  is  guided  by  the  principles  of  hon- 

esty and  economy. 

RELATIONS,  RELATIVES 

Relation.  The  fact  or  condition  of  being  related  or  connected  or 
that  by  which  things  are  connected,  either  objectively  or  in  the  mind; 
the  standing  of  two  or  more  things  with  reference  each  to  the  other; 
interdependence;  connections,  such  as  family  relations. 

Relative.     One  that  is  connected  by  blood  or  affinity;  a  kinsman. 

We  may  rightly  speak  of  our  business  relations,  but  should  not  use 
the  word  in  reference  to  those  related  to  us  by  blood. 

1.  His  business  relations  have  always  been  pleasant. 

2.  I  have  not  been  associated  with  any  of  my  relatives  in  the  grain 

business. 

STATUE,  STATUTE 

Statue.  A  plastic  work  representing  a  human  or  animal  figure, 
generally  in  marble  or  bronze;  especially  such  a  work  nearly  life- 
size  or  large  as  distinguished  from  statuette  and  preserving  the  pro- 
portions in  all  directions  as  distinguished  from  relief. 

Statute.  A  legislative  enactment  duly  sanctioned  and  authenti- 
cated by  constitutional  rule. 

Do  not  make  such  errors  as  this:   "He  carved  a  beautiful  statute.'^ 

1.  A  statue  of  General  Grant  was  placed  near  the  entrance  of 

the  building. 

2.  The  planters  were  protected  in  their  rights  by  a  state  statute. 


LESSON  FIVE 

How  TO  Use  the  Personal  Pronouns  Correctly 

Among  the  troublesome  words  which  you  use  frequently 
are  the  personal  pronouns.  They  include  /,  we,  me,  us, 
he,  she,  they,  him,  her,  and  them.  Unlike  nouns,  the  per- 
sonal pronouns  have  distinct  forms  for  subject  and  for 
object. 

Those  that  are  used  as  subjects  are  commonly  called 
nominative  forms,  and  they  include  /,  we,  he,  she,  and  they. 
Note  their  use  as  subjects  in  these  sentences. 

1.  /  am  required  to  open  the  envelopes  and  check  all  enclosures. 

2.  Under  separate  cover  they  sent  samples. 

Those  that  are  used  as  objects  are  called  objective  forms. 
The  objective  forms  are  me,  us,  him,  her,  and  them.  The 
following  sentences  illustrate  their  use: 

1.  The  stranger  saw  me  working  at  the  desk. 

2.  We  notify  them  by  card  or  by  letter  when  their  order  has  been 

received. 

3.  The  clerk  addressed  the  envelope  for  him.     {Him  is  the  ob- 

ject of  for.) 

Unless  your  English  is  very  good  you  will  probably  find 
that  in  compound  subjects  you  have  been  using  an  objec- 
tive form  where  you  needed  a  subject,  or  nominative  form. 
You  have  heard  such  expressions  as  "  Miss  Smart  and  me 
work  in  the  shipping  department  "  and  "  Us  boys  are 
stud)dng  shorthand."  The  pronouns  needed  here  are,  of 
course,  /  and  we  —  thus:  "  Miss  Smart  and  /  work  in  the 
shipping  department,"  and  "  We  boys  are  studying  short- 

19 


20  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

hand."  Such  errors  are  common  where  the  subject  is 
compound,  that  is,  where  there  are  two  or  more  subjects. 

A  like  error  is  often  made  when  the  object  is  com- 
pound —  as,  "  Mr.  Wayman  sent  James  and  me  to  the 
post  office."  It  would  be  bad  English  to  say,  "Mr. 
Wayman  sent  James  and  /  to  the  post  office."  Remember 
also  that  you  should  use  objective  forms  after  prepositions 
—  such  words  as  in,  on,  at,  to,  from,  between,  etc.  Have 
you  ever  heard  such  sentences  as  these:  ^^ Between  you 
and  I  there  should  be  no  hard  feehngs  in  regard  to  the 
settlement  of  this  account,"  ^^For  you  and  I  there  is  little 
hope  of  success,"  and  "  Hand  your  report  to  Mr.  Shall- 
cross  or  I  ".?  However  right  these  may  sound,  they  are, 
nevertheless,  incorrect,  and  you  must  make  a  determined 
effort  to  say,  ^^ Between  you  and  me  there  should  be  no 
hard  feehngs  in  regard  to  the  settlement  of  this  account," 
"For  you  and  me  there  is  Httle  hope  of  success,"  and  "Hand 
your  report  to  Mr.  Shallcross  or  we." 

By  the  rule  of  politeness  the  speaker  should  mention 
himself  last,  and  the  pronoun  you  should  stand  first  in  the 
sentence.  It  is  therefore  incorrect  to  say,  "  I  and  Mr. 
Fisher  will  assist  you  in  fihng  the  letters  "  and  "  I  hope 
you  will  include  me  and  Miss  Benn  in  your  maihng  Hst." 
The  following  sentences  illustrate  the  appHcation  of  the  rule : 

1.  Miss  Smith  and  I  will  make  copies  of  the  letter. 

2.  I  hope  you  will  include  Miss  Benn  and  me  in  your  mailing  list. 

3.  You,  Mr.  Miller,  and  I  have  just  been  appointed  mailing 

clerks. 

Your  attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  fact 
that  objective  forms  of  the  pronouns  should  be  used  after 


HOW  TO  USE  PERSONAL  PRONOUNS   CORRECTLY    21 

prepositions.  There  are,  however,  two  words  that  deserve 
special  attention  on  account  of  the  large  number  of  errors 
that  arise  in  their  use.     These  words  are  like  and  than. 

Like  should  be  considered  a  preposition  in  such  sentences 
as  these:  "  Like  you  and  me  Miss  Starr  wishes  to  become 
a  private  secretary  "  and  ^^Like  him  I  have  learned  to  use 
an  adding  machine."  It  is  incorrect  to  use  like  as  a  con- 
junction —  that  is,  to  introduce  a  statement;  for  example, 
"  The  typewriter  looks  like  it  needed  cleaning  ^^  and  "  It  looks 
like  the  superintendent  will  not  he  here  this  afternoon. ^^  In 
all  such  cases  use  as  if,  as  though,  or  as  —  thus:  "The  type- 
writer looks  as  if  it  needed  cleaning  J*^ 

After  than  or  as  introducing  an  incomplete  clause,  always 
use  the  form  of  the  pronoun  required  if  the  clause  were  ex- 
pressed in  full;  for  example,  "  Mr.  Stein  can  take  dictation 
faster  than  I  (can).'^  Do  not  say,  "  Mr.  Stein  can  take 
dictation  faster  than  we." 

So  important  are  the  common  errors  in  the  use  of  pro- 
nouns that  a  complete  hst  of  correct  forms  is  presented  for 
your  study.  Note  that  the  pronoun  it  is  not  included,  as 
the  subject  and  object  forms  are  the  same,  and  therefore 
there  are  no  errors  in  their  use.  The  correct  forms  should 
be  repeated  aloud  and  written  several  times. 

The  following  sentences  show  compound  subjects  cor- 
rectly used: 

1.  John  and  I  stamped  the  envelopes.     (Not  John  and  me.) 

2.  He  and  his  partner  borrowed  the  capital.     (Not  him  and  his 

partner.) 

3 .  She  and  her  friend  secured  positions.     (Not  her  and  her  friend.) 

4.  Our  friends  and  we  resigned.     (Not  Our  friends  and  us.) 


22  ACTUAL   BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

5.  They  and  their  competitors  agreed.     (Not  them  and  their  com- 

petitors.) 

6.  He  and  I  worked  late.     (Not  him  and  I  or  him  and  me.) 

7.  She  and  I  signed  the  note.     (Not  her  and  I  or  her  and  me.) 

8.  She  and  he  signed  the  note.     (Not  her  and  he  or  her  and  him.) 

9.  They  and  I  made  a  contract.     (Not  them  and  I,  they  and  me, 

or  them  and  me.) 
y     10.  Ue  and  they  cut  prices.     (Not  him  and  they,  he  and  them,  or 
him  and  them.) 

11.  She  and  they  resigned.     (Not  her  and  they  or  her  and  them.) 

12.  They,  he,  and  I  all  did  a  big  business.     (Not  them,  he,  and  /or 

them,  him,  and  I,  or  them,  him,  and  me.) 

13.  They,  she,  and  I  sell  insurance.     (Not  them,  she,  and  I  or  them, 

her,  and  I  or  them,  her,  and  me.) 

14.  They  and  we  made  a  profit  on  the  goods.      (Not  them  and  we 

or  they  and  us.) 

15.  They,  he,  and  we  had  a  meeting.     (Not  them,  him,  and  us  or 

they,  him,  and  us,  or  them,  him,  and  we.) 

16.  They,  she,  and  we  bought  steel  stock.     (Not  them,  her,  and  us 

or  they,  her,  and  us  or  them,  her,  and  we.) 

The  following  sentences  show  the  same  pronouns  cor- 
rectly used  as  objects: 

1.  The  envelopes  were  stamped  by  John  and  me.     (Not  John 

and  I.) 

2.  The  capital  was  borrowed  by  him  and  his  partner.     (Not  he 

and  his  partner.) 

3.  The  positions  were  secured  by  her  and  her  friends.     (Not  she 

and  her  friends.) 

4.  They  discharged  us  and  our  friends.    (Not  we  and  our  friends.) 

5.  An  agreement  was  made  between  them  and  their  competitors. 

(Not  they  and  their  competitors.) 

6.  The  hour  was  late  for  him  and  me.   (Not  he  and  I  or  him  and  I.) 

7.  The  note  was  signed  by  her  and  me.     (Not  she  and  I  or  she 

and  me.) 


HOW  TO  USE  PERSONAL  PRONOUNS  CORRECTLY  23 

8.  The  note  was  signed  by  her  and  him.     (Not  she  and  he  or  her 

and  he.) 

9.  A  contract  was  made  by  them  and  me.     (Not  they  and  I  or 

them  and  I  or  they  and  me.) 

10.  Prices  were  cut  by  him  and  them.     (Not  he  and  they  or  him  and 

they  or  he  and  them.) 

11.  Resignations  were  mailed  to  the  company  by  her  and  them. 

(Not  she  and  they  or  she  and  them  or  her  and  they.) 

12.  Business  prospered  for  them,  him,  and  me.     (Not  they,  he,  and 

I  or  them,  him,  and  I  or  they,  him,  and  me.) 

13.  Much  insurance  was  sold  by  them,  her,  and  me.     (Not  they, 

she,  and  I  or  them,  she,  and  I  or  they,  her,  and  me.) 

14.  A  profit  on  the  goods  was  made  by  them  and  us.     (Not  they 

and  us  or  them  and  we.) 

15.  A  meeting  was  held  by  them,  him,  and  us.     (Not  they,  he,  and 

we  or  they,  him,  and  us  or  they,  he,  and  us.) 

16.  Several  shares  of  steel  stock  were  bought  by  them,  her,  and  us. 

(Not  they,  she,  and  we  or  them,  she,  and  we  or  they,  she,  and 
us.) 


LESSON  SIX 

How  TO  Use  the  Pronouns  Correctly  (Continued) 

There  is  one  important  exception  to  the  rule  stated  in 
Lesson  Five;  namely,  the  nominative,  or  subject,  pro- 
nouns should  be  used  after  the  various  forms  of  the  verb  be. 
You  have  often  heard  such  mistakes  as  "It  is  we  "  and 
"  It  was  her  "  for  "  It  was  I  "  and  "  It  was  she.''  It  will 
require  a  great  deal  of  care  to  estabHsh  the  habit  of  using 
the  correct  expression  in  all  such  cases.  First  of  all  you 
will  need  to  remember  the  various  forms  of  the  verb  be. 
They  include  is,  are,  was,  were,  has  been,  have  been,  can  be, 
could  be,  will  be,  shall  be,  would  be,  should  be,  may  be,  etc. 
Read  the  following  sentences  carefully  and  review  them 
frequently  until  you  can  use  the  correct  form  without 
effort: 

1.  It  is  I  who  distribute  the  mail. 

2.  //  is  we  who  address  the  envelopes. 

3.  It  is  they  who  asked  for  application  blanks. 

4.  Who  was  at  the  desk?     //  was  she. 

5.  //  it  was  he  who  folded  the  letter,  he  did  not  follow  the  rule. 

6.  //  it  had  been  they  who  received  the  goods,  they  would  have 

notified  us  at  once. 

7.  I  am  sure  it  will  he  he  who  will  be  chosen  business  manager. 

8.  Can  it  he  she  who  is  working  at  the  letterpress? 

9.  Could  it  have  been  they  who  manufactured  an  article  so  inferior 

as  this? 
10.  If  any  company  succeeds  in  the  clothing  business,  it  should  he 
we. 

There  are  only  two  exceptions  to  the  foregoing,  as  fol- 
lows: When  to  be  or  to  have  been  is  preceded  by  the  word 

24 


HOW  TO  USE  THE  PRONOUNS  CORRECTLY    25 

it,  the  verbal  is  followed  by  the  objective  form  of  the  pro- 
noun —  thus : 

1.  I  believe  it  to  be  him. 

2.  I  supposed  it  to  have  been  them. 

When  to  be  or  to  have  been  is  not  immediately  preceded 
by  it,  the  verbal  is  followed  by  the  subject  form,  or  nom- 
inative, as  usual  —  thus : 

1.  It  was  believed  to  be  he. 

2.  It  was  supposed  to  have  been  they. 


LESSON  SEVEN 

How  TO  Use  the  Pronouns  Correctly  (Continued) 

TROUBLESOME   COMPOUNDS 

Certain  compound  pronouns  are  so  frequently  misused 
that  it  will  be  necessary  to  study  them  somewhat  carefully. 
They  include  the  following  forms: 

myself  ourselves 

himself  themselves 

herself 

itself 

yourself  yourselves 

These  forms  should  not  be  used  as  subjects.  For  ex- 
ample, it  is  incorrect  to  write  the  following: 

1.  Sister  and  myself  a.re  studying  business  English. 

2.  Mr.  Cline  and  yourself  will  be  sent  to  our  Missouri  territory. 

3.  The  agent  and  myself  should  be  able  to  arrange  terms  of  sale 

satisfactory  to  both  sides. 

The  correct  expressions,  of  course,  are  as  follows: 

1.  Sister  and  I  are  studying  business  English. 

2.  Mr.  Cline  and  you  will  be  sent  to  our  Missouri  territory. 

3.  The  agent  and  I  should  be  able  to  arrange  terms  of  sale  satis- 

factory to  both  sides. 

Do  not  allow  yourself  to  fall  into  the  habit  of  using  the 
compound  forms  to  supplant  the  simple  personal  pronouns- 
either  as  subjects  or  objects.  For  example,  do  not  say, 
"  He  intrusted  the  work  to  Miss  White  and  myself  "  and 
"  //  was  ourselves  who  were  compelled  to  cancel  our  orders." 
It  is  correct  to  say,  ''  He  intrusted  the  work  to  Miss  White 

26 


HOW  TO  USE  THE  PRONOUNS  CORRECTLY   27 

and  me/^  and  "  It  was  we  who  were  compelled  to  cancel 
our  orders." 

The  compound  forms  may,  however,  be  used  with  a  sub- 
ject, or  even  with  an  object,  for  emphasis  —  thus: 

1.  The  superintendent  himself  signed  the  check. 

2.  /  myself  was  appointed  wire  chief. 

3.  The  mistake  was  made  by  the  president  himself. 

4.  They  themselves  have  become  manufacturers  of  rubber  goods. 

They  may  also  be  correctly  used  to  refer  back  to  the 
subject  —  thus: 

1.  The  carpenter  hurt  himself. 

2.  The  salesman  did  himself  an  injustice. 

3.  By  refusing  to  pay  the  account,  you  have  placed  yourself  in 

a  very  embarrassing  position. 

Certain  incorrect  forms  often  creep  into  our  speech. 
Do  not  say  hisself  for  himself,  theirself  for  themselves, 
ourself  for  ourselves,  and  theirsehes  for  themselves.  For 
example,  it  is  incorrect  to  say,  "  Our  packers  theirsehes 
are  responsible  for  the  broken  table,"  "Owr  buyer  hisself 
was  unsuccessful  in  selecting  the  best  quaHty  of  goods," 
and  "  We  bought  oil  stock  ourself.''^  The  correct  expres- 
sions are,  of  course,  as  follows:  "  Our  packers  themselves  are 
responsible  for  the  broken  table,"  "  Our  buyer  himself  was 
unsuccessful  in  selecting  the  best  quality  of  goods,"  and 
"  We  bought  oil  stock  our  selves. ^^ 

A   GROUP   OF    SINGULAR   SUBJECTS 

Each  of  the  following  subjects  denotes  but  one  person. 
Learn  them  thoroughly  and  do  not  forget  that  they  are 
singular  subjects. 


28  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

anyone  anybody  a  person 

everyone  everybody  a  man 

none  nobody 

someone  somebody 

Everyone  and  everybody  look  very  much  like  plural 
forms,  but  each  refers  to  but  one  person.  Therefore, 
when  you  use  pronouns  to  refer  to  these  words,  you 
should  use  the  singular  to  agree  with  them  in  number  — 
thus: 

1.  Everybody  took  off  his  hat. 

2.  Someone  has  lost  his  check. 

3.  Anyone  can  do  as  he  pleases  about  returning  the  goods. 

4.  Nobody  can  deny  that  he  has  made  mistakes  selling. 

5.  Everyone  has  the  right  to  protect  his  own  property. 

6.  A  person  should  never  forget  his  duty  to  his  regular  customers. 

The  following  words  also  are  singular  when  used  as  pro- 
nouns: each,  every,  either,  and  neither.  These  words  are 
also  frequently  used  with  singular  subjects.  Note  care- 
fully how  they  are  used  in  the  following  sentences: 

1.  Each  took  off  his  coat. 

2.  Each  clerk  had  his  pencil  and  notebook. 

3.  Every  man  in  our  store  has  his  own  salesbook. 

4.  Either  Mr.  Deal  or  Mr.  Wise  must  give  his  full  time  to  the 

work  of  preparing  for  the  spring  sales. 

When  two  or  more  subjects  connected  by  and  are  pre- 
ceded by  each,  every,  or  no,  the  pronoun  must  be  singular. 
For  example,  you  should  say,  "  Each  letter  and  each  card 
has  its  place,"  not  "  Each  letter  and  each  card  has  their 
place."  Also,  "  Each  person  has  his  own  desk,"  not  "  Each 
person  has  their  own  desk."  In  this  sentence  his  is  prefer- 
able to  his  or  her,  though  either  may  be  used. 


HOW  TO  USE  THE  PRONOUNS   CORRECTLY         29 

Sometimes  a  second  subject  is  joined  to  another  by  such 
expressions  as  and  also,  as  well  as,  together  with,  but  not,  etc. 
When  this  is  the  case,  the  pronoun  must  agree  in  number 
with  the  first,  as  the  first  is  indeed  the  real  subject;  for 
example,  "  Mr.  Price,  as  well  as  our  other  representatives, 
has  done  his  best  to  serve  our  interests." 

Some  difficulty  arises  in  the  use  of  pronouns  to  repre- 
sent nouns  denoting  a  collection.  When  the  collection  is 
thought  of  as  a  whole,  you  should  use  a  singular  pronoun 
—  as,  "  The  jury  returned  its  verdict  at  noon."  The  case 
is  different,  however,  when  the  individuals  in  the  collec- 
tion are  thought  of  —  as,  "  The  jury  were  divided  in  their 
opinions." 

When  the  pronoun  one  is  used  as  a  subject,  it  is  not 
generally  followed  by  his,  but  by  one^s;  for  example,  "  One 
should  do  one's  best  to  increase  the  business  of  the  firm." 
Some  authorities,  however,  assert  that  it  is  a  matter  of 
taste  whether  his  or  one's  should  be  used  when  one  is  the 
subject.^ 

*  Scott:  Practical  English,  pages  42-43. 


LESSON  EIGHT 

Relative  Pronouns 

There  are  four  relative  pronouns  —  whOj  which,  that,  and 
what.  They  are  of  such  great  importance  in  ordinary- 
speech  and  writing  that  everyone  should  learn  to  use  them 
correctly. 

Who  should  be  used  in  speaking  of  persons;  which,  in 
speaking  of  animals  and  things;  and  that,  in  speaking  of 
persons,  animals,  and  things.  What  is  equivalent  to  that 
which  and  is  used  in  speaking  of  things. 

That  has  a  broader  use  than  any  other  relative,  often 
being  used  instead  of  who  or  which.  It  must  necessarily 
be  used  when  there  is  joint  reference  to  persons  and  things 
—  as,  "  Our  attention  was  turned  to  the  man  and  the  dog 
that  entered  the  store."  Its  most  appropriate  use,  how- 
ever, is  to  introduce  a  clause  that  limits  closely  the  word 
to  which  it  refers  —  as,  "  The  man  that  lives  next  door  is 
the  manager  of  the  company."  The  clause  "  that  lives 
next  door  "  points  out  a  particular  man  (not  every  man); 
so  that  it  may  be  regarded  as  limiting  the  word  man  closely. 
You  will  find,  however,  that  some  good  writers  do  not  fol- 
low this  rule,  but  use  who  in  speaking  of  persons  or  which 
in  speaking  of  animals  and  things  whenever  it  suits  their 
fancy. 

Who  has  different  forms  for  the  nominative,  possessive, 
and  objective  uses. 

Nominative,  or  subject,  form  who 

Possessive  form  whose 

Objective,  or  object,  form  whom 
30 


RELATIVE  PRONOUNS  31 

Notice  the  use  of  these  forms  in  the  following  sentences: 

1.  The  owner  of  a  good  car  respects  the  man  who  sold  it  to  him. 

(yVho  is  the  subject  of  sold.) 

2.  We  believe  you  will  like  the  new  salesman  whom  we  have  sent. 

(Whom  is  the  object  of  sent.) 

3.  This  is  the  merchant  whose  profit  last  year  exceeded  fifty  per 

cent. 

A  very  common  error  is  the  use  of  who  for  whom 
in  short  questions  ending  or  beginning  with  a  prepo- 
sition. You  almost  constantly  hear  such  incorrect  expres- 
sions as  these:  "  Who  did  you  call  for?  "  "  Who  are  you 
working  for? "  "  Who  are  you  associated  in  business 
with?  "  In  all  such  cases  you  should  use  an  objective 
form  on  account  of  the  preposition.  If  you  will  turn  these 
expressions  around  so  that  the  preposition  stands  first,  you 
can  see  this  more  clearly.  The  correct  expressions  are 
these:  ^^  For  whom  did  you  call?"  ^^  For  whom  are  you 
working?  "  "  With  whom  are  you  associated  in  business?  " 
If  you  prefer  to  close  a  question  with  a  preposition,  you 
should  usually  begin  it  with  the  word  whom.  For  ex- 
ample, you  should  say:  "  Whom  are  you  working  for?" 
"  Whom  shall  we  appeal  to?  "  But  it  is  better  to  use  the 
preposition  at  the  beginning  of  the  clause  or  sentence  than 
at  the  end. 

Remember  that  the  forms  of  the  verb  be  {is,  are,  was, 
were,  etc.)  take  subject  forms  after  them,  which,  as  you 
learned  in  Lesson  Six,  is  an  exception  to  the  general  rule 
that  all  verbs  are  followed  by  the  objective  form.  It 
is,  therefore,  incorrect  to  say,  "  Whom  did  you  say  the 


32  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

manager  was?  "  or  "I  do  not  know  whom  it  is  that  is  to 
blame."     Say  who  in  these  cases. 

Sometimes  when  certain  expressions  —  such  as,  "  I  am 
sure/'  "  I  cannot  doubt,"  etc.  —  are  thrown  into  the  sen- 
tence, you  will  find  it  more  difficult  to  choose  between  who 
and  whom;  for  example,  ^'  We  are  sending  you  a  book- 
keeper who,  we  are  sure,  will  give  satisfaction."  Here  who 
is  the  right  word,  because  a  subject  is  needed  for  will  give. 
But  it  is  correct  to  say,  "  She  is  a  young  lady  whom,  I  am 
sure,  you  can  trust.''  In  this  sentence  whom  is  the  object 
of  can  trust.  Note  carefully  the  following  sentence:  "  The 
superintendent,  who,  as  you  know,  was  to  blame,  has  been 
discharged."  This  is  somewhat  more  involved  than  any 
of  the  preceding  sentences,  but  it  becomes  easy  if  you 
merely  drop  out  the  parenthetical  expression  "as  you 
know."  It  then  appears  that  who  is  the  subject  of  was  in 
the  expression  "  who  was  to  blame."  No  one  would  think 
of  saying  "  whom  was  to  blame." 

The  compound  forms  whoever  and  whomever  are  used 
like  who  and  whom.  Whoever  is  a  subject,  or  nominative 
form,  while  whomever  is  the  objective.  The  form  whom- 
ever may  disappear  at  some  time  in  the  future,  but  it  should 
not  be  given  over  yet.  Note  the  correct  use  of  these 
words  in  the  following  sentences : 

1.  I  will  enter  into  a  contract  with  whoever  gives  me  the  best 

terms. 

2.  Whoever  can  sell  the  greatest  number  of  cars  will  be  given  a 

prize. 

3.  You  may  employ  whomever  you  choose.     (Whomever  is  the 

object  of  choose.) 


RELATIVE  PRONOUNS  ss 

4.  Hand  the  subscription  list  to  whomever  you  meet.     (Whom- 
ever is  the  object  of  the  preposition  io.) 

Note  carefully  this  sentence:  "When  a  check  is  made 
payable  to  the  bearer,  the  bank  must  pay  the  money  to 
whoever  presents  it."  Here  a  subject  for  the  verb  presents 
is  needed,  and  whomever  would  be  incorrect.  The  whole 
word  clause  is  the  object  of  the  preposition  to. 


LESSON  NINE 

Troublesome  Verbs 

Most  verbs  have  one  form  to  denote  present  time  and 
another  to  denote  past  time  —  as,  "  I  see  "  and  "  I  saw.'* 
Many  errors  arise  from  confusing  these  two  forms.  For 
example,  come  and  came  are  confused.  Came  is  rightly 
used  to  express  only  past  time,  but  again  and  again  you 
will  hear  such  sentences  as  "  I  come  late  to  work  yester- 
day," "  Many  orders  come  last  Monday,"  and  "  As  soon 
as  the  telegram  come,  I  handed  it  to  Mr.  Wright."  In  the 
same  way  the  following  forms  are  often  confused: 

Present  Past 

forbid  forbade 

give  gave 

run  ran 

It  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  When  I  arrived  the  tesLcher  forbid  me  to  enter. 

2.  I  give  you  references  in  my  letter  of  January  lo. 

3.  Our  supply  of  oak  lumber  run  out  last  week. 

Good  usage  requires  that  we  use  the  past  forms,  com- 
monly called  the  past  tense,  in  these  sentences  —  thus: 

1.  The  tesicher  forbade  me  to  enter  when  I  arrived. 

2.  I  gave  you  references  in  my  letter  of  January  10. 

3.  Our  supply  of  oak  lumber  ran  out  last  week. 

Verbs  also  have  a  third  form  which  is  called  the  past 
participle.  For  example,  the  verb  see  has  for  its  principal 
parts  the  forms  see,  saw,  and  seen.  It  is  the  third  form, 
or  past  participle,  with  which  are  used  has,  have,  is,  are, 

34 


TROUBLESOME  VERBS  35 

was,  were,  will  be,  shall  be,  and  a  few  others,  giving  the  cor- 
rect expressions  has  seen,  have  seen,  is  seen,  are  seen,  was 
seen,  were  seen,  etc.  The  past  participle  cannot  be  used 
either  to  make  an  assertion  by  itself  or  to  express  past 
time.  Many  mistakes  arise  in  this  way,  and  they  are  in- 
deed crude.  The  following  sentences  illustrate  this  kind 
of  error: 

1.  I  seen  Mr.  Wiley  folding  the  letter. 

2.  I  begun  work  at  eight  o'clock  today. 

3.  Miss  Price  broken  my  typewriter. 

4.  The  young  man  done  the  work  with  a  stamping  machine. 

5.  At  noon  I  drunk  a  glass  of  milk. 

6.  The  manager  shrunk  from  the  unpleasant  task  of  discharging 

the  boy. 

7.  Mr.  Wells  sung  all  day  long  at  the  music  counter. 

Good  usage  requires  that  you  use  in  these  sentences 
either  the  ordinary  past  forms  or  the  past  participle  with 
one  of  the  forms  of  have  or  be,  according  to  the  meaning  to 
be  conveyed  —  thus : 

1.  I  saw  Mr.  Wiley  folding  the  letters,     (or  have  seen.) 

2.  I  began  work  at  eight  o'clock  today. 

3.  Miss  Price  broke  my  typewriter,     (or  has  broken.) 

4.  The  young  man  did  the  work  with  a  stamping  machine,     (or 

has  done.) 

5.  At  noon  I  drank  a  glass  of  milk. 

6.  The  manager  shrank  from  the  unpleasant  task  of  discharging 

the  boy. 

7.  Mr.  Wells  sang  all  day  long  at  the  music  counter,  (or  has  sung.) 

Many  mistakes  arise  through  the  use  of  has  or  have,  is 
or  are,  was  or  were,  with  the  ordinary  past  forms.  For 
example,  "  I  have  saw  "  or  ^'  I  have  went  "  is  incorrect. 


3^ 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


Other  mistakes  of  this  kind  include  has  did,  has  broke,  has 
drank,  has  ate,  etc.  The  correct  expressions,  of  course,  are 
have  seen,  have  gone,  has  done,  has  broken,  has  drunk,  and 
has  eaten. 

Recent  investigations  have  shown  that  most  of  our  mis- 
takes occur  in  the  use  of  thirty  or  forty  verbs.  These  have 
been  gathered  together  in  the  following  list.^  Every  stu- 
dent should  carefully  learn  their  principal  parts. 


Present 

Past                   Past  Participle 

awake 

awoke 

awaked 

blow 

.blew 

blown 

break 

broke 

broken 

burst 

burst 

burst 

choose 

chose 

chosen 

come 

came 

come 

dive 

dived 

dived 

do 

did 

done 

draw 

drew 

drawn 

drink 

drank 

drunk 

drive 

drove 

driven 

eat 

ate 

eaten 

flee 

fled 

fled 

flow 

flowed 

flowed 

fly 

flew 

flown 

freeze 

froze 

frozen 

go 

went 

gone 

hang 

hung  (an  object) 

hung 

hang 

hanged  (a  person) 

hanged 

know 

knew 

known 

lose 

lost 

lost 

loose 

loosed 

loosed 

1  This  list  contains  all  the  principal  verbs  listed  in  the  investigation  of 
pupils'  errors  made  by  Prof.  W.  W.  Charters,  with  some  additions. 


TROUBLESOME  VERBS 


37 


Present 
plead 
prove 
ride 
rise 
run 
see 
shine 
show 
shrink 
sing 
sink 
slay- 
speak 
steal 
swim 
tear 
throw 
wear 
write 


Past 

Past  Participle 

pleaded 

pleaded 

proved 

proved 

rode 

ridden 

rose 

risen 

ran 

run 

saw 

seen 

shone 

shone 

showed 

shown 

shrank 

shrunk 

sang 

sung 

sank 

sunk 

slew 

slain 

spoke 

spoken 

stole 

stolen 

swam 

swum 

tore 

torn 

threw 

thrown 

wore 

worn 

wrote 

written 

Compare  the  expressions  given  below  and  form  the  habit 
of  using  each  verb  correctly.     If  necessary,  read  the  sen- 
tences carefully  several  times. 
Incorrect 


1.  Our  office  boy  had  awoke 

at  six  o'clock  each  day. 

2.  The  whistle  has  blew  early 

the  past  few  days. 

3.  The  man  has  broke  his  con- 

tract with  us. 

4.  The  motor  was  so  heavy 

that  it  bursted  the  box. 

5.  Mr.  Lane  had  chose  book- 

keeping. 


Correct 

1.  Our  office  boy  had  awaked 

at  six  o'clock  each  day. 

2.  The  whistle  has  blown  early 

the  past  few  days. 

3.  The  man   has  broken  his 

contract  with  us. 

4.  The  motor  was  so  heavy 

that  it  burst  the  box. 

5.  Mr.  Lane  had  chosen  book- 

keeping. 


3^ 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


Incorrect 

6.  The  messenger  dove  into 

the  stream. 

7.  Mr.  Brown  done  his  work 

well  while  employed 
here. 

8.  The  architect  has  drawed 

a  plan  for  our  new  fac- 
tory building. 

9.  The  railroad  company  re- 

fused to  employ  anyone 
who  had  drank  liquor  for 
several  years. 

10.  The   salesman   had   drove 

from  one  village  to  an- 
other. 

11.  Our    employees    had    eat 

lunch  early  that  day. 

12.  The  bandit  had  fleed  with 

the  payroll. 

13.  A  copy  of  the  contract  had 

fell  out  of  the  window. 

14.  We  are  sorry  to  learn  that 

the  fruit  was  froze  be- 
fore it  reached  you. 

15.  We  have  went  through  our 

files  carefully. 

16.  The  company  has  knowed 

his  financial  standing  for 
many  months. 

17.  Our    attorney    plead    the 

case. 

18.  The  Goodrich  Tires  have 

more  than  proven  supe- 
rior in  quality. 


Correct 

6.  The  messenger  dived  into 

the  stream. 

7.  Mr.  Brown  did  his  work 

well  while  employed 
here. 

8.  The  architect  has  drawn  a 

plan  for  our  new  factory 
building. 

9.  The  railroad  company  re- 

fused to  employ  anyone 
who  hcLd  drunk  liquor  for 
several  years. 

10.  The  salesman  had  driven 

from  one  village  to  an- 
other. 

11.  Our    employees    had  eaten 

lunch  early  that  day. 

12.  The  bandit  had  fled  with 

the  payroll. 

13.  A  copy  of  the  contract  had 

fallen  out  of  the  window. 

14.  We  are  sorry  to  learn  that 

the  fruit  was  frozen  be- 
fore it  reached  you. 

15.  We  have  gone  through  our 

files  carefully. 

16.  The  company  has  known 

his  financial  standing  for 
many  months. 

17.  Our  attorney  pleaded  the 

case. 

18.  The  Goodrich  Tires  have 

proved  more  than  supe- 
rior in  quality. 


TROUBLESOME   VERBS 


39 


Incorrect 

19.  Our  salesmen  have  often 

rode  eighty  miles  a  day 
by  automobile. 

20.  The  elderly  gentleman  had 

ran  a  grocery  store. 

21.  The  secretary  has  showed 

me  how  to  iile  the  pa- 
pers. 

22.  The   company   had   sank 

beneath  the  weight  of 
its  debts. 

23.  Evidently  the  watchman 

had  stayed  the  robber. 

24.  The  head  of  the  complaint 

department    had    spoke 
harshly  to  him. 

25.  A  well  dressed  woman  had 

stole    a    beautiful    fur 
coat. 

26.  The   boy   had  swam   the 

stream  in  an  effort  to 
deliver  the  package. 

27.  Several   leaves    were   tore 

from  the  book  you  sent 
us. 

28.  The  customer  throwed  the 

package   down. 

29.  I  have  wore  this  style  of 

shoes  for  three  years. 


Correct 

19.  Our   salesmen   have  often 

ridden  eighty  miles  a  day 
by  automobile. 

20.  The  elderly  gentleman  had 

run  a  grocery  store. 

21.  The   secretary  has  shown 

me  how  to  file  the  pa- 
pers. 

22.  The    company    had    sunk 

beneath  the  weight  of 
its  debts. 

23.  Evidently   the   watchman 

had  slain  the  robber. 

24.  The  head  of  the  complaint 

department  had  spoken 
harshly  to  him. 

25.  A  well  dressed  woman  had 

stolen    a    beautiful    fur 
coat. 

26.  The    boy   had   swum   the 

stream  in  an  effort  to 
deliver  the  package. 

27.  Several    leaves    were    torn 

from  the  book  you  sent 
us. 

28.  The    customer    threw   the 

package  down. 

29.  I  have  worn  this  style  of 

shoes  for  three  years. 


LESSON  TEN 

Troublesome  Verbs  (Continued) 

The  verbs  lie,  sit,  and  rise  are  often  misused.  If  you 
understand  their  meaning,  however,  you  should  have  Uttle 
difficulty  with  them.  The  following  are  simple  definitions 
which  you  should  learn: 

To  lie  means  to  rest  in  a  reclining  position. 

To  sit  means  to  rest  on  the  haunches  or  to  occupy  a  seat. 

To  rise  means  to  get  up,  not  to  raise  something. 

As  you  have  already  learned,  every  verb  has  three  prin- 
cipal parts  —  the  present  tense,  the  past  tense,  and  the 
past  participle.  The  principal  parts  of  the  verbs  given 
here  should  be  carefully  learned: 


resent 

Past 

Past  Participle 

lie 

lay 

lain 

sit 

sat 

sat 

rise 

rose 

risen 

There  are  also  three  verbs  very  similar  to  these  —  namely, 
lay,  set,  and  raise.  Though  they  are  different  in  meaning 
from  lie,  sit,  and  rise,  they  are  often  confused  with  them. 
You  should  therefore  learn  the  exact  meaning  of  each. 

To  lay  means  to  place  an  object  down. 

To  set  means  to  place  something  or  to  cause  to  sit. 

To  raise  means  to  lift  an  object  or  to  cause  it  to  rise. 

You  will  remember  that  some  verbs  take  an  object  — 
as,  "We  wrote  the  letter. ^^    Here  the  noun  letter  is  the  ob- 

40 


TROUBLESOME  VERBS  41 

ject  of  wrote.  The  verbs  lay,  set,  and  raise  take  an  object, 
and  in  this  way  differ  from  lie,  sit,  and  rise.  Note  that 
one  always  lays^  raises^  or  sets  something,  some  object. 
For  example,  "  The  stenographer  laid  her  notebook  on  the 
table/* 

The  fact  that  these  verbs  are  similar  makes  it  necessary 
to  distinguish  carefully  their  forms.  For  this  reason  they 
are  given  here  in  pairs: 


Present 

Past 

Past  Participle 

Ue 

lay 

lain  > 

lay 

laid 

laid 

It  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  I  laid  down  to  rest  before  going  to  the  office. 

2.  We  have  lain  your  letter  aside. 

It  is  correct  to  say  — 

1.  llay  down  to  rest  before  going  to  the  office. 

2.  We  have  laid  your  letter  aside. 


Present 

Past 

Past  Participle 

sit 

sat 

sat 

set 

set 

set 

It  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  Mr.  Smith  set  down  to  dictate  a  letter. 

2.  The  salesman  sat  the  box  on  the  counter. 

3.  The  secretary  has  set  at  his  desk  every  day  for  months. 

It  is  correct  to  say  — 

1.  Mr.  Smith  sat  down  to  dictate  a  letter. 

2.  The  salesman  set  the  box  on  the  counter. 

3.  The  secretary  has  sat  at  his  desk  every  day  for  months. 


42  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


Present 

Past 

Past  Participle 

rise 

rose 

risen 

raise 

raised 

raised 

It  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  Wages  raised  on  the  first  of  the  month. 

2.  The  successful  accountant  had  raised  from  the  ranks. 

3.  The  price  of  clothing  had  rose  steadily  for  two  years. 

It  is  correct  to  say  — 

1.  Wages  rose  on  the  first  day  of  the  month. 

2.  The  successful  accountant  had  risen  from  the  ranks. 

3.  The  price  of  clothing  had  risen  steadily  for  two  years. 

There  are,  however,  a  few  expressions  that  do  not  fol- 
low the  rule.  They  are  called  idioms  and  do  not  require 
explanation,  because  an  idiom  is  a  usage  that  has  no  gram- 
matical explanation.  Such  expressions  include  the  follow- 
ing: "  The  next  day  we  set  out  on  our  journey  "  and  "  The 
sun  5^5." 

Two  other  verbs  are  also  commonly  confused  —  leave 
and  let.  The  meanings  of  these  words,  if  kept  in  mind, 
should  insure  their  correct  use. 

To  leave  means  to  go  away  from  a  person  or  an  object. 

To  let  means  to  permit. 

Errors  arise  when  you  use  leave  where  let  should  be  em- 
ployed.    For  example,  it  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  Leave  me  go  to  the  post  office  for  you. 

2.  Leave  him  do  the  filing. 

3.  Leave  him  have  a  trial  as  stenographer. 

It  is  correct  to  say  — 

1.  Let  me  go  to  the  post  office  for  you. 

2.  Let  him  do  the  filing. 

3.  Let  him  have  a  trial  as  stenographer. 


LESSON  ELEVEN 

Special  Use  of  Were 

Ordinarily  were  should  be  used  with  plural  subjects  to 
express  past  time,  but  it  is  also  used  to  express  a  condi- 
tion that  is  contrary  to  fact  and  to  express  a  wish. 

Conditions  are  generally  introduced  by  the  conjunction 
if — as,  "If  I  were  you,  I  should  figure  merchandise  costs 
more  closely."  If  the  condition  is  contrary  to  the  fact, 
were  is  used,  even  with  singular  subjects,  such  as  /,  he,  she^ 
it,  and  singular  nouns.  The  following  sentences  illustrate 
this  usage: 

1.  If  I  were  you  (but  I  am  not),  I  would  study  both  stenography 

and  bookkeeping. 

2.  If  he  were  to  blame  for  the  error  (but  he  isn't),  we  would  gladly 

replace  the  goods. 

3.  //  she  were  a  graduate  of  a  commercial  course  (but  she  isn't), 

we  would  gladly  give  her  the  position. 

4.  //  it  were  possible  to  send  you  an  exact  duplicate  of  the  chair 

(but  it  isn't),  we  would  gladly  do  it. 

5.  //  the  young  man  were  able  to  spell  and  use  the  typewriter  well 

(but  he  isn't),  we  would  consent  to  keep  him  in  our  office. 

Whenever  the  condition  is  an  admitted  fact,  however, 
was  should  not  be  used  with  singular  subjects.  The  fol- 
lowing sentences  illustrate  this  point : 

1.  If  I  was  to  blame  for  the  loss  (and  I  was  or  may  have  been),  I 

will  pay  for  it. 

2.  If  he  was  not  as  well  qualified  for  the  position  as  his  opponent 

(and  he  was  not),  he  should  not  have  been  elected. 

3.  If  Mr.  Riley  was  slow  at  typewriting  (and  he  was),  he  could 

not  hope  to  hold  the  position. 
43 


44  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

4.   If  the  letter  was  not  properly  paragraphed  (and  it  wasn't), 
it  should  not  have  been  sent. 

To  express  a  wish,  use  were  with  /,  he,  she,  it,  and  sin- 
gular nouns.  No  trouble  arises  when  plural  subjects  are 
used.  Wishes  are,  of  course,  always  contrary  to  fact,  and  this 
is  why  were  should  be  used.    Note  the  following  illustrations : 

1.  I  wish  I  were  able  to  double  my  speed  in  shorthand. 

2.  Would  that  he  were  thoroughly  prepared  for  the  position! 

3.  We  wish  that  it  were  possible  to  adjust  the  matter  as  you  sug- 

gest in  your  letter  of  February  8. 

4.  We  wish  this  last  lot  of  shoes  were  of  much  better  quaHty. 

You  should  therefore  be  careful  to  avoid  such  errors  as 
these:  "If  I  was  you,"  "If  I  was  he,"  and  "I  wish  I 
was  "  or  "I  wish  it  was,^^  Remember  also  that  it  is  in- 
correct to  say,  "  You  was  "  or  ^'Was  you."  The  pronoun 
you  is  plural  in  form  and  consequently  requires  a  plural 
verb  —  as,  "  You  were,^^  "  You  are,"  etc. 

Sometimes  the  word  if  is  omitted,  and  were  is  made  to 
stand  first  in  the  sentence  —  thus : 

1.  Were  your  financial  standing  rated  good  in  Bradstreet^s,  we 

would  grant  you  credit. 

2.  Were  the  table  as  good  as  you  represented,  I  would  not  ask  to 

return  it. 

Throughout  this  lesson  your  attention  has  been  called 
to  the  special  use  of  were  with  singular  subjects,  because 
ordinarily  it  is  used  with  plural  forms.  You  will  therefore 
need  to  remember  only  the  foregoing  instructions.  These 
may  be  summed  up  as  follows: 

1.  Use  were  with  singular  subjects  in  clauses  contrary  to  fact. 

2.  Use  were  with  singular  subjects  in  clauses  expressing  a  wish. 

3.  Always  use  were  with  the  subject  you  and  with  plural  subjects. 


LESSON  TWELVE 

Shall  AND  Will 

A  careful  examination  of  sample  letters  from  many  large 
firms  throughout  the  country  reveals  the  fact  that  shall 
and  will  are  used  not  only  with  great  frequency  but  in 
nearly  every  case  correctly.  This  shows  that  the  writers 
have  given  careful  thought  to  correct  usage  and  that  they 
recognize  the  value  of  these  words  in  expressing  shades  of 
meaning.  In  oral  speech  perhaps  even  the  most  careful 
business  men  do  not  always  distinguish  between  shall  and 
will,  but  they  are  careful  to  do  so  in  written  speech.  No 
good  business  house  would  desire  to  employ  a  stenographer 
who  does  not  know  how  to  use  shall  and  will  correctly. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  practical  usage  of  these  words 
which  you  cannot  easily  learn.  In  this  lesson  you  will  find 
the  explanations  and  illustrations  made  very  easy. 

When  you  wish  merely  to  express  future  time,  use  shall 
with  /  and  we.  The  word  is  correctly  used  in  the  follow- 
ing sentences: 

1.  We  shall  welcome  future  orders  from  you. 

2.  We  shall  be  glad  to  hear  from  you  in  a  few  days  that  our  terms 

are  satisfactory. 

3.  I  shall  he  pleased  to  meet  your  representative  and  talk  the 

matter  over  with  him. 

4.  I  shall  he  delighted  to  see  you. 

If  you  wish  to  express  a  promise  or  to  show  that  you 
are  determined  to  do  something,  use  will  with  /  and  we. 
Thus  "  I  will "  is  the  natural  and  correct  way  to  say,  "  I 

45 


46  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

am  willing/'  "  I  promise,"  or  "  I  have  made  up  my  mind." 
Note  the  correct  use  of  will  in  these  sentences: 

1.  Send  the  bookcase  back,  and  we  will  refund  your  money. 

2.  We  will  extend  your  credit  from  thirty  to  sixty  days. 

3.  If  shipment  has  not  already  been  made,  we  will  see  that  the 

cabinet  goes  forward  just  as  soon  as  possible. 

4.  The  goods  reached  us  in  damaged  condition,  and  unless  you 

replace  them  we  will  place  no  more  orders  with  your  house. 

5.  I  will  send  a  tracer  at  once. 

Do  not  say,  "  I  will  he  pleased  to  call  at  your  office  for 
a  personal  interview  "  or  "I  will  he  glad  to  meet  your 
cousin."  In  such  sentences  you  are  not  making  a  promise 
or  even  expressing  determination,  for  certainly  nobody 
would  promise  or  express  a  determination  to  be  pleased  or 
to  be  glad.  Remember  that  the  correct  expressions  are 
these:    "  I  shall  he  pleased  "  and  "  I  shall  he  glad.'' 

In  questions  always  use  shall  with  /  and  we.  Remember 
to  say,  ''Shall  /.? "  or  ''Shall  we?''  Note  the  following 
illustrations : 

1.  Shall  I  answer  the  telegram  from  the  Simmons  Hardware 

Company? 

2.  Shall  we  address  the  letters  to  the  company  or  to  you  person- 

ally? 

You  have  already  learned  that  you  should  use  shall  with- 
/  and  we  to  express  future  time.  With  all  other  subjects, 
however,  you  should  use  will  to  express  future  time.  The 
term  "  all  other  subjects  "  includes  you,  he,  she,  it,  John, 
people,  etc.  Note  carefully  the  use  of  will  in  the  following 
sentences: 


SHALL  AND   WILL  47 

1.  You  will  be  pleased  with  Goodrich  tires. 

2.  It  will  require  three  months  to  finish  the  course  in  business 

EngHsh. 

3.  The  enclosed  card  when  properly  filled  out  will  bring  you  our 

catalog. 

If  you  wish  to  express  determination  that  someone  else 
shall  do  a  thing,  you  should  use  shall  instead  of  will  with 
all  subjects  but  /  and  we.  A  promise  is  expressed  in  the 
same  way.  The  meaning  is  usually  very  clear.  Note  care- 
fully the  following  illustrations: 

1.  They  shall  not  pass.     (Determination.) 

2.  You  shall  have  your  orders  in  the  future.     (Promise.) 

3.  If  he  will  return  the  wheel,  he  shall  have  an  exact  duplicate*. 

(Promise.) 

In  questions,  when  any  subject  other  than  I  or  we  is 
used,  choose  the  word  that  would  occur  in  the  answer. 
In  this  case  you  would  have  to  pause  a  moment  to  think 
what  the  answer  would  be;  then  the  difficulty  quickly  dis- 
appears.    Note  carefully  the  following  illustrations: 

1.  Will  you  file  these  letters?    I  will.     (Promise  in  the  answer.) 

2.  Shall  you  welcome  future  orders  from  them?    We  shall  wel- 

come them. 

3.  If  you  do  not  finish  your  work,  what  excuse  shall  you  give? 

I  shall  give  none. 

Should  and  would  are,  in  general,  used  like  shall  and 
will,  being  the  past  tense  forms  of  these  verbs.  Would 
may  also  be  used  to  express  habitual  action  —  as,  "  The 
secretary  would  sit  for  hours  at  his  desk."  Both  should 
and  would  are  frequently  used  by  business  men  and  others 
in  so-called  softened  statements  —  as,  **  I  should  advise  an 


48  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

early  settlement "  or  "I  should  like  to  suggest  a  better 
plan  of  adjustment."  Finally,  should  is  often  used  to  ex- 
press duty  or  obligation  —  as,  "  We  believe  that  you 
should  make  a  small  payment  at  least  each  month." 

In  clauses  introduced  by  that,  expressed  or  understood, 
when  the  subject  is  different  from  that  in  the  principal 
statement,  the  same  auxihary  should  be  used  that  would 
be  employed  if  the  clause  were  made  a  separate  sentence 
—  for  example,  "  Henry  says  that  I  will  find  my  new  work 
interesting."  Here  will  is  the  correct  word,  because  if 
the  clause  were  made  an  independent  sentence,  it  would 
be  stated  as  follows:  "  Henry  said,  *  You  will  find  your 
new  work  interesting.'  " 


LESSON  THIRTEEN 

Agreement 

A  verb  must  agree  with  its  subject  in  number  —  that  is, 
if  a  subject  is  singular  in  meaning,  the  verb  must  be  sin- 
gular; if  plural,  the  verb  must  be  plural.  Ordinarily,  you 
will  recognize,  without  difficulty,  a  subject  as  singular  or 
plural  in  meaning,  but  in  some  cases  you  may  easily  be 
mistaken.  In  order  to  assist  you,  some  of  the  essential 
facts  of  the  agreement  of  the  verb  with  its  subject  are 
presented  in  this  lesson. 

1.  Two  singular  subjects  connected  by  and  or  both  —  and 
take  a  plural  verb  —  as,  "  Springgate  and  Geer  are  part- 
ners." If,  however,  the  words  are  intended  to  be  singular 
in  meaning,  they  take  a  singular  verb  —  as,  "  Springgate 
and  Geer  is  the  name  of  the  firm." 

2.  Two  singular  subjects  connected  by  or,  either  —  or,  or 
neither  —  nor  take  a  singular  verb  —  thus : 

1.  Miss  Porter  or  Miss  Condon  is  ready  to  make  copies  of  the 

letter. 

2.  Either  stenography  or  bookkeeping  is  a  profitable  occupa- 

tion. 

3.  Neither  the  salesman  nor  the  customer  has  any  cause  for 

complaint. 

Always  make  sure  that  you  use  the  right  words  in 
pairs;  namely,  either  —  or  and  neither  —  nor.  For  example, 
you  shouM  not  use  or  with  neither  in  such  expressions  as 
"  I  had  neither  book  or  pencil."  This  of  course  should  be 
stated  as  follows:  "  I  had  neither  book  nor  pencil."  It  is 
also  a  very  common  error  to  use  nor  after  not  in  such 

49 


50  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

sentences  as  "  We  did  not  see  Miller  nor  Jones.''  This 
should  be  stated  thus:  "  We  did  not  see  Miller  or  Jones." 
If  the  pronoun  /  or  we  is  used  in  a  compound  subject 
connected  by  these  words  or  by  or  alone,  it  will  according 
to  the  order  of  courtesy  stand  second,  and  the  verb  must 
agree  with  it  in  number.  Observe  carefully  the  follow- 
ing examples : 

1.  Either  she  or  /  am  to  blame  for  the  delay. 

2.  Neither  Mr.  Stone  nor  we  are  under  obligations  to  find  the 

errors  in  your  accounts. 

3.  If  one  subject  is  joined  to  another  by  such  expres- 
sions as  with^  in  addition  to,  as  well  as,  or  also,  the  verb 
should  agree  with  the  first,  which  is  in  fact  the  real  subject. 
This  contention  is  supported  by  the  best  authorities,  in- 
cluding Wood  and  Woolley.  Note  that  even  the  punctu- 
ation indicates  that  these  subjects  are  disjoined  and  do 
not  form  a  compound  subject. 

1.  Money,  as  well  as  mind,  counts  for  much  in  business. 

2.  Mr.  Reed,  in  addition  to   three  other  friends  of  mine,  has 

signed  the  contract. 

3.  Miss  Huff,  with  her  friend,  is  waiting  in  the  office. 

4.  This  young  man,  together  with  his  brother,  has  learned  of 

the  increased  demand  for  stenographers. 

4.  A  collective  noun  is  one  that  stands  for  a  group  or 
class  considered  as  a  unit.  When  the  group  is  considered 
as  a  whole,  the  subject  takes  a  singular  verb  —  as,  "  The 
committee  is  ready  to  report."  If,  however,  the  indi- 
viduals are  thought  of  as  acting  individually  or  holding  dif- 
ferent opinions,  etc.,  the  verb  must  be  plural  —  as,  *'The 
committee  were  by  no  means  of  one  mind  concerning  the 


AGREEMENT  5 1 

report."  Perhaps  the  easiest  way  to  learn  to  use  collec- 
tive nouns  correctly  is  to  make  a  note  of  sentences  in  which 
they  are  used  by  reputable  business  firms  and  by  good 
present-day  writers.  Here  are  a  few  examples,  which  you 
should  study  until  the  difficulty  disappears: 

1.  The  Guaranty  Trust  Company  of  New  York  was  the  only  in- 

stitution in  the  state  accepting  sterling  drafts  payable  at  a 
future  date. 

2.  Our  firm  was  doing  the  most  prosperous  business  in  its  his- 

tory. 

3.  The  firm  were  unable  to  agree  on  a  plan  of  advertising. 

4.  The   Bankers   Life  Company  continues   its  conservative  in- 

vestment policy. 

5.  T.  Morgan  ^  Son  owe  him  $3000.00. 

6.  The  National  Cash  Register  Company  is  a  large  concern. 

5.  Fractions  and  the  words  plenty,  variety,  abundance, 
and  rest  are  generally  followed  by  the  word  of.  If  of  is 
followed  by  a  plural  noun,  use  a  plural  verb;  if  followed 
by  a  singular  noun,  use  a  singular  verb  —  thusi^ 

1.  Seven  eighths  of  the  farm  is  timber  land. 

2.  One  half  of  the  company's  employees  are  mere  boys. 

3.  An  abundance  of  peaches  were  shipped  to  us. 

4.  A  variety  of  apples  were  sold  in  my  store. 

Sometimes  a  subject  plural  in  form  represents  a  single 
thing  and  consequently  takes  a  singular  verb  —  thus:^ 

1.  Fifty  dollars  is  too  much. 

2.  Ten  days  is  too  long  to  wait  for  the  money. 

Read  the  following  sentences  carefully  until  you  under- 

1  Scott:   Practical  English,  page  21. 

2  WooUey:   Written  English,  page  189. 


52  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

stand  them  thoroughly.      Compare  them  with  the  fore- 
going illustrations. 

1.  Miss  Stone  and  I  are  employed  at  John  Wanamaker's  store 

in  Philadelphia. 

2.  Neither  Miss  Hess  nor  I  am  going  to  resign. 

3.  A  variety  of  oranges  were  offered  for  sale. 

4.  The  number  of  girls  employed  in  the  office  is  ten. 

5.  A  number  of  clerks  were  discharged. 

6.  Four  fifths  of  the  estate  is  Mr.  Wright's  share. 

7.  The  firm  agrees  to  pay  all  outstanding  bills. 

8.  The  ]ury  finds  for  the  plaintiff. 

9.  The  Curtis  PubHshing  Company  is  a  well-known  firm. 

10.  A  multitude  of  visitors  go  to  Springfield  every  year  to  visit 

the  tomb  of  Lincoln. 

11.  Denver,  as  well  as  other  western  cities,  has  become  known 

in  every  part  of  the  country  for  its  healthful  climate. 

12.  The  Chalmers  Motor  Company,  as  well  as  a  number  of 

other   manufacturers   of   cars,   has  its   headquarters   in 
Detroit. 

13.  Ten  dollars  is  too  much  to  pay  for  a  hat. 

14.  One  fourth  of  the  time  is  devoted  to  the  study  of  business 

English. 

15.  Neither  Mr.  Wray  nor  Miss  Perry  has  finished  the  course  in 

commercial  correspondence. 

16.  The  entire  family  were  opposed  to  John's  leaving  school. 


LESSON  FOURTEEN 

Agreement  {Continued) 

1.  Sometimes  when  a  noun  stands  between  the  subject 
and  the  verb,  it  requires  care  to  make  the  verb  agree  with 
the  real  subject.  For  example,  take  the  sentence  "  One 
of  his  customers  is  dissatisfied."  Since  one  is  the  subject, 
it  would  be  incorrect  to  use  are  dissatisfied. 

Read  these  sentences  several  times  and  observe  that  the 
subjects  and  verbs  in  italics  agree  in  number: 

1.  Part  of  the  supplies  has  been  shipped. 

2.  None  of  the  clerks  was  permitted  to  leave  his  work  unfinished. 

3.  Any  one  of  us  is  eligible  to  enter  the  contest. 

4.  A  box  of  handkerchiefs  has  been  sent  to  you. 

5.  Either  of  the  boys  is  qualified  to  take  a  position  as  secretary. 

6.  Every  one  of  the  soldiers  was  anxious  to  go  to  Europe. 

7.  Each  of  the  boys  comes  from  a  good  home. 

8.  Everybody  who  has  graduated  has  taken  business  English. 

2.  The  relative  pronouns  who,  which,  and  that  are 
singular  subjects  when  their  antecedents  are  singular, 
and  plural  when  their  antecedents  are  plural.  For  ex- 
ample, take  the  sentence,  "He  is  one  of  those  conserva- 
tive men  who  do  not  take  a  chance  on  the  stock  market." 
Here  who  refers  to  men,  for  the  speaker  evidently  means 
to  mention  a  certain  class  of  men;  namely,  "men  who 
do  not  take  a  chance  on  the  stock  market."  Since  the 
word  men  is  plural,  who  is  plural  and  consequently  takes 
a  plural  verb.  You  must  be  very  careful,  therefore,  in 
writing  sentences  of  this  kind  to  determine  just  what  the 
antecedent  of  the  pronoun  is. 

S3 


54  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Note  carefully  whether  the  verb  in  each  clause  is  singular 
or  plural  and  explain: 

1.  Mr.  Clark  is  one  of  those  men  who  talk  incessantly  about 

their  investments. 

2.  Marshall  Field  is  one  of  the  few  merchants  who  are  known 

throughout  the  country. 

3.  Salesmanship  is  the  most  interesting  of  the  many  subjects 

that  have  been  added  to  the  curriculum. 

4.  Miss  Dougherty  is  one  of  those  stenographers  who  never 

make  a  mistake. 

3.  There  are  at  least  two  contracted  forms  that  cause 
considerable  trouble;  namely,  donH  and  doesn't.  The 
word  don't  is  a  contraction  of  do  not  and,  therefore,  can  be 
rightly  used  only  to  take  the  place  of  that  expression. 
Do  not  is  used  with  plural  subjects  and  with  /.  You  must 
be  careful,  then,  to  use  the  contracted  form  don't  only  with 
these  subjects.  It  is  correct  to  say  /  don't,  we  don't,  you 
don't,  they  don't,  and  men  don't,  but  you  should  not  say 
he  don't,  she  don't,  it  don't,  and  John  don't.  No  one  would 
think  of  saying  he  do  not  and  she  do  not.  You  must  not, 
therefore,  say  he  don't  and  she  don't.  As  it  is  right  to  say 
he  does  not,  she  does  not,  it  does  not,  and  John  does  not,  you 
may  say  he  doesn't,  she  doesn't,  it  doesn't,  etc.  These  errors 
are  so  common  that  every  one  should  make  a  special  effort 
to  use  he  and  she  with  doesn't  —  as,  "  He  doesn't  study  his 
bookkeeping  thoroughly  enough"  and  "  She  doesn't  Hke 
music." 

The  following  sentences  contain  the  word  don't  used 
correctly  with  /,  we^  you,  and  plural  subjects: 

I.  I  don't  give  any  man  as  reference  unless  I  have  his  full  per- 
mission. 


AGREEMENT  55 

2.  We  donH  find  typewriting  difficult. 

3.  They  don't  care  for  the  customer's  welfare. 

4.  Business  men  donH  regret  the  money  they  spend  on  adver- 

tising. 

The  following  sentences  contain  doesn't  correctly  used 
with  he,  she,  it,  who  (singular),  and  singular  subjects.  Of 
course,  when  who  refers  to  more  than  one,  it  is  used  with 
donH  —  as,  "  Those  who  donH  try  to  save  will  not  accu- 
mulate much  money."  As  about  nine  tenths  of  the  mis- 
takes occur  in  the  use  of  doesn't,  you  should  read  these 
sentences  until  you  cannot  forget  them: 

1.  He  doesnH  understand  the  meaning  of  debit  and  credit. 

2.  She  doesn't  understand  drafts,  invoices,  and  bills  of  lading. 

3.  Miss  Pike  doesn't  hke  her  present  position. 

4.  Two  other  very  crude  errors  commonly  occur  in  un- 
guarded conversation;  namely,  hain't  and  ain't.  In  order 
to  avoid  them,  you  should  find  the  correct  contractions. 
Almost  always  the  proper  expression  will  be  one  of  these: 
are  not,  aren't,  have  not,  haven't,  has  not,  hasn't,  is  not,  or 
isn't.  Whenever  you  find  that  you  have  used  hain't  or 
ain'tj  correct  yourself  immediately.  Keep  this  up  until 
you  can  use  the  right  form  without  effort.  Remember 
that  the  ability  to  speak  good  EngUsh  is  a  part  of  your 
stock  in  trade. 


LESSON  FIFTEEN 

Verbs  Commonly  Confused 

It  is  sometimes  claimed  that  the  finer  shades  of  meaning 
between  certain  similar  words  are  gradually  disappearing 
and  that  it  is  not  worth  while  to  acquire,  by  constant 
effort,  the  habit  of  distinguishing  them.  Careful  writers, 
however,  do  not  abandon  useful  distinctions  so  freely  as 
this  would  imply.  Therefore,  if  you  wish  to  write  Eng- 
lish correctly  and  effectively,  you  must  take  as  your  stand- 
ard the  work  of  the  best  present-day  writers  and  the  cor- 
respondence of  the  best  business  concerns  in  the  country. 
All  definitions  are  taken  from  the  New  Standard  Dictionary.^ 
The  following  Hst  of  words  includes  a  number  that  repu- 
table writers  and  business  men  still  use  with  great  care : 

ADVISE,   INFORM 

Advise.  To  offer  an  opinion  to,  by  way  of  common  counsel; 
give  suggestion  or  advice  to  concerning  a  course  or  act;  counsel; 
warn  —  as,  to  advise  a  friend  to  reform. 

Inform.  To  tell  (a  person)  that  of  which  he  had  no  knowledge 
before;  to  impart  information  to.  (i)  To  communicate  news  to; 
to  notify;  to  apprise;  etc.  (2)  To  communicate  instruction  to; 
etc. 

Advise  is  most  appropriately  used  in  the  sense  of  to  counsel  or 
to  give  suggestion  concerning  a  course  or  an  act.  It  is  correct  to  use 
it  in  letters  in  the  sense  of  to  tell,  but  inform  is  better. 

AFFECT,   EFFECT 

Affect.  I.  To  have  an  effect  upon;  act  upon;  lay  hold  of;  im- 
press; influence;  change  —  as,  "Worry  ajed^  the  mind."    2.  To  act 

1  Copyright  by  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company,  New  York  and  London.     . 

56 


VERBS   COMMONLY  CONFUSED  57 

upon  the  emotions  or  sensibilities  of;  to  touch;  to  move  —  as, 
''The  audience  was  deeply  affected." 

Effect.  To  be  the  cause  or  producer  of;  bring  about;  especially 
to  bring  to  an  issue  of  full  success;  accomplish;  achieve. 

Effect,  meaning  to  accomplish,  must  be  carefully  distinguished 
from  affect,  meaning  to  influence.  The  following  sentences  illustrate 
the  correct  use  of  the  words: 

1.  Labor  unions  have  effected  two  great  reforms  —  higher  wages 

and  shorter  hours. 

2.  Improper   working   conditions   affect   the   health   of   working 

people. 

3.  Prices  were  greatly  affected  by  an  oversupply  of  commodities. 

CALCULATE,   INTEND 

Calculate.  To  compute  mathematically;  ascertain  by  computa- 
tion; to  find  out  beforehand  the  time  or  circumstances  of;  to 
reckon. 

Intend.  To  set  the  mind  on  to  accompHsh;  be  intent  upon;  have 
in  view  as  a  purpose  to  be  effected ;  plan;  design. 

Calculate  should  never  be  used  in  the  sense  of  intend.  It  is  cor- 
rect to  say,  'T  intend  to  apply  for  the  position,"  but  not  'T  calcu- 
late to  apply  for  the  position."  To  use  calculate  or  reckon  in  the 
sense  of  think,  suppose,  or  believe  is  colloquial  and  therefore  to  be 
avoided. 

DISCOMMODE,   INCOMMODE 

These  words  mean  substantially  the  same;  namely,  to  cause  in- 
convenience to;  annoy.  Incommode  is,  however,  considered  the 
better  form  of  the  two,  but  inconvenience  is  usually  better  than 
either. 

DISCOVER,   INVENT 

Discover.  To  get  first  sight  or  knowledge  of,  as  something  pre- 
viously unknown  or  unperceived;  find  out;  ascertain;  espy;  de- 
tect. 


58  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH  . 

Invent.  To  find  out  as  a  new  means,  instrument,  or  method; 
contrive  by  ingenuity. 

One  discovers  what  already  existed  but  was  previously  unknown, 
and  invents  some  new  means,  instrument,  or  method  —  thus: 

1.  The  explorer  discovered  a  new  river. 

2.  Many  useful  office  machines  have  recently  been  invented. 

EXPECT,  SUSPECT,  GUESS 

Expect.  To  look  forward  to  as  certain  or  probable;  feel  assured 
of  before  the  event;  anticipate  in  thought. 

Suspect.  I.  To  imagine  to  exist;  to  have  some  though  insuffi- 
cient grounds  for  inferring;  also,  to  have  a  vague  notion  of  the  ex- 
istence of,  without  adequate  proof;  mistrust;  surmise;  often  fol- 
lowed by  an  object  clause  —  as,  'T  suspect  that  he  is  deceiving 
me."    2.   To  believe  to  be  possibly  guilty. 

Guess.  To  judge,  estimate,  or  conclude  from  slight  indications 
or  on  mere  probable  grounds;  anticipate  or  presume  without  sure 
knowledge  or  adequate  evidence;  hazard  a  supposition  about;  con- 
jecture —  as,  to  guess  a  person's  age. 

Do  not  use  guess  for  expect,  because  the  latter  is  used  in  speaking 
of  future  events  looked  forward  to  as  probable  or  certain.  When 
you  have  some  though  insufficient  grounds  for  inferring  a  thing,  use 
suspect.  Expect  cannot  be  used  in  speaking  of  the  past.  Note  the 
following  examples: 

1.  We  expect  a  shipment  of  new  refrigerators  from  our  factory 

within  a  week  or  two. 

2.  I  suspect  that  he  did  not  address  the  letter  carefully. 

3.  Do  not  permit  your  customer  to  suspect  that  you  are  deceiving 

him. 

4.  We  could  not  even  guess  whether  prices  would  advance  or  fall. 

GRADUATE,  WAS  GRADUATED 

Graduate.  To  admit  to  or  take  an  academic  degree  at  the  end  of 
a  course  of  instruction,  especially  a  college  or  university.  The 
institution  graduates  the  candidate  at  the  end  of  a  course  of  in- 


VERBS  COMMONLY  CONFUSED  59 

struction.  The  man  is  therefore  graduated,  and  objection  is  often 
made  to  ''He  graduated,"  but  this  double  meaning  is  frequent,  and 
in  this  word  well  established. 

The  foregoing  discussion  is  sufficient  authority  for  the  use  of 
the  expression  "Mr.  Hunt  graduated,^'  as  well  as  "Mr.  Hunt  was 
graduated." 

IMPLICATE,   INVOLVE 

Implicate.  To  bring  into  intimate  connection;  affect;  involve; 
hence,  to  show  or  prove  to  be  involved  or  concerned  in  —  as,  to 
implicate  in  the  plot  by  evidence. 

Involve.  I.  To  draw  into  entanglement  literally  or  figuratively; 
implicate;  embroil  —  as,  to  involve  a.  nsLtion  in  wa,r.  2.  To  include 
or  necessitate  as  a  part  or  adjunct;  have  as  a  result  or  logical  con- 
sequence; imply;  comprise;  etc. 

While  these  words  are  similar  in  meaning,  it  should  be  remem- 
bered that  implicate  is  used  in  a  bad  sense  —  as,  to  implicate  in  a 
crime,  plot,  conspiracy,  etc.  Involve  does  not  imply  any  unfavorable 
connection. 

1.  Evidence  was  submitted  that  implicated  several  wholesale  deal- 

ers in  a  plot  to  raise  the  price  of  clothing. 

2.  Mr.  Drew  was  not  involved  in  any  controversies  with  his  com- 

petitors. 

IRRITATE,   AGGRAVATE,   EXASPERATE 

Irritate,  i.  To  excite  ill  temper  or  impatience  in;  make  petulant; 
fret;  exasperate  —  as,  to  be  irritated  by  the  prattle  of  children. 
2.  To  excite  physically;  inflame  or  cause  reaction  in  by  stimula- 
tion —  as,  to  irritate  the  skin  by  electricity  or  friction. 

Aggravate,  i.  To  add  weight  or  intensity  to;  to  make  heavier, 
worse,  or  more  burdensome;  also,  to  make  more  heinous;  increase 
the  guilt  of  —  as,  "  Sickness  aggravates  the  ills  of  poverty."  2.  Colloq. 
To  provoke  greatly;  exasperate;  annoy — "He  aggravated  me  be- 
yond measure."  3.  To  increase  inflammation  in;  irritate  —  as,  to 
aggravate  a  wound. 

Exasperate^     l.  Tq  rouse  a:nd  roughen  the  temper  of-    irritate 


6o  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

exceedingly;  excite  great  anger  in;  enrage.  2.  To  make  bitter  or 
grievous;  aggravate  as  in  grievousness  or  malignancy;  embitter;  in- 
tensify; inflame. 

Remember,  therefore,  that  aggravate  should  not  be  used  for  irri- 
tate or  exasperate,  for  to  use  it  in  the  sense  of  to  provoke  greatly  or 
to  exasperate  is  colloquial. 

1.  Mr.  Holt's  carelessness  irritates  his  employer. 

2.  The  attempt  to  bring  colored  laborers  from  the  South  aggra- 

vated the  situation. 

3.  Tried  by  unfavorable   circumstances,   he  became  thoroughly 

exasperated. 

LEARN,   TEACH 

Learn.  To  acquire  knowledge  of  or  skill  in  by  observation,  study 
or  instruction;  become  informed  about. 

Teach.  To  impart  knowledge  or  information  to  by  means  of  les- 
sons; give  instruction  to;  guide  by  precept  or  example;  train;  edu- 
cate; discipline;  counsel  —  as,  to  train  a  child. 

If  you  remember  that  to  learn  means  to  acquire  knowledge,  and 
to  teach  means  to  impart,  you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  using  these 
words  correctly. 

1.  It  is  not  difficult  to  learn  how  to  use  the  mimeograph. 

2.  The  company  sent  an  agent  to  teach  him  how  to  drive  the  car. 

MEND,   FIX 

Mend.  To  restore  to  a  sound  or  serviceable  condition,  as  some- 
thing broken,  worn,  or  defaced;  supply  deficiencies  or  defects  in; 
patch  up;  repair  —  as,  to  mend  shoes. 

Fix.  To  fasten,  attach,  or  secure  firmly  or  set  or  place  per- 
manently; make  firm  or  secure. 

Do  not  use  fix  in  the  sense  of  mend  or  repair. 

1.  Our  vforkradji  fixed  the  rod  in  the  proper  position. 

2.  The  shoemaker  mended  the  shoes. 

PURPOSE,   PROPOSE 

Purpose.  To  have  or  place  before  oneself  as  a  purpose  or  aim; 
have  a  fixed  determination  to  do  or  attain;  resolve;  intend;  design. 


VERBS   COMMONLY  CONFUSED  6i 

Propose.  To  offer,  as  a  plan  or  scheme,  for  acceptance  or  con- 
sideration; present  as  a  candidate;  put  forward  —  as,  to  propose  a 
topic  or  question  for  discussion. 

1.  The  manager  proposed  a  plan  for  the  reorganization  of  the 

company. 

2.  A  salesman  sometimes  purposes  to  improve  his  personality. 


LESSON  SIXTEEN 

Adjectives  and  Adverbs 

Most  mistakes  in  the  use  of  adjectives  and  adverbs  are 
due  to  the  violation  of  certain  very  simple  rules  of  good 
usage.  In  this  lesson  your  attention  will  be  directed  to 
the  most  important  of  these. 

A,  an,  and  the,  sometimes  called  articles,  are  merely  ad- 
jectives. You  learned  in  the  grammar  grades  that  a  should 
be  used  before  a  noun  beginning  with  a  consonant  sound 
and  an  before  a  noun  beginning  with  a  vowel  sound.  Ac- 
cording to  Webster,  a  should  be  used  in  the  following: 
a  unit,  a  eulogy,  a  oneness,  a  history,  a  historian,  a  one, 
and  a  hotel.  An  should  be  used  before  honest,  hour,  etc. 
These  illustrations  show  that  whether  a  or  an  is  to  be 
used  depends  upon  the  sound  of  the  following  word  and 
not  upon  its  first  letter. 

If  two  or  more  adjectives  modify  the  same  noun,  the 
article  should  be  used  before  the  first  adjective  only  —  as, 
a  black  and  red  ribbon  (one  ribbon) ;  a  red,  white,  and  blue 
flag. 

Sometimes,  however,  two  or  more  adjectives  modify  dif- 
ferent nouns,  only  one  of  which  is  expressed,  the  other  being 
understood.  In  such  cases  the  article  should  be  repeated 
before  each  adjective  —  thus: 

1.  The  carbon  and  the  letterpress  copies  are  lying  on  your  desk. 

(Two  different  copies) 

2.  The  express  and  the  postal  money  orders  were  received.     (Two 

different  money  orders) 

3.  Have  you  a  large  and  a  small  envelope?     (Two  differeut  en- 

velopes) 

6z 


ADJECTIVES  AND  ADVERBS  63 

When  two  nouns  refer  to  the  same  person  or  thing,  the 
article  should  be  used  before  the  first  noun  only  —  thus: 
The  secretary  and  treasurer  was  not  at  the  ofl&ce. 

When  the  nouns  refer  to  different  persons  or  things,  you 
should  repeat  the  article  before  each  —  thus: 

1.  The  secretary  and  the  treasurer  were  not  at  the  office. 

2.  The  office  manager  and  the  stenographer  have  been  selected. 

Sometimes  the  nouns  are  so  closely  related  in  thought 
that  they  may  be  considered  as  a  whole.  In  such  cases 
the  article  need  be  used  only  before  the  first  —  thus: 

1.  The  bread  and  butter. 

2.  The  pen  and  ink. 

This  AND  That 

This  and  that  are  two  very  simple  words  that  cause  a 
great  deal  of  trouble.  The  difficulty  arises  from  the  failure 
to  remember  that  each  has  a  distinct  plural  form  and  that 
the  plurals  should  be  used  only  with  plural  nouns.  The 
plural  of  this  is  these,  and  the  plural  of  that  is  those.  It 
is,  therefore,  incorrect  to  say  these  kind,  these  sort,  those 
kind,  and  those  sort.  You  should  say  this  kind,  this  sort, 
that  kind,  and  that  sort.  If,  however,  there  is  more  than 
one  kind  or  sort,  you  should  use  the  following  expressions: 
these  kinds,  these  sorts,  those  kinds,  and  those  sorts.  Avoid 
the  use  of  a  in  such  expressions  as  "  this  kind  of  a  person." 
It  is  better  to  say  "  this  kind  of  person." 

A  more  serious  error,  however,  is  the  use  of  the  objec- 
tive pronoun  them  as  if  it  were  an  adjective  to  take  the 
place  of  these  or  those  —  them  papers,  them  typewriters,  etc. 


64  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Another  crude  error  should  be  mentioned  here.  You 
doubtless  have  heard  the  expressions  this  here  and  that 
there  in  such  expressions  as  "  This  here  book  is  torn  "  and 
"  That  there  letter  is  neatly  written."  The  words  here  and 
there  should  be  omitted. 

The  following  sentences  contain  this  and  that  correctly 
used.  Read  them  several  times  until  you  are  able  to  use 
the  correct  expressions  without  effort. 

1.  I  like  this  kind  of  stationery. 

2.  We  have  ordered  these  kinds  of  envelopes. 

3.  This  sort  of  work  does  not  appeal  to  him. 

4.  Among  other  things  we  have  for  sale  these  sorts  of  utensils. 

5.  That  machine  is  not  in  good  repair.     Not  That  there  machine) 

6.  I  like  this  kind,    (Not  these  kind) 

7.  These  kinds  of  typewriters  include  almost  every  make. 

8.  This  kind  of  letterhead  is  of  the  most  attractive  style. 

COMPOUND   ADJECTIVES 

When  compound  expressions  are  used  to  form  adjectives 
standing  before  the  noun  they  modify,  they  should  be 
written  with  a  hyphen  —  as,  " sl  fifty-foot  lot,"  "a  sixty-day 
note,"  etc.  The  following  expressions  containing  compound 
adjectives  are  commonly  found  in  business  correspondence :  ^ 

a  fifteen-day  note  labor-saving  machine 

a  two-letter  series  ready-made  clothes 

mail-order  department  all-wool  suits 

two-foot  rule  hand-made  laces 

Compound  numerals  should  always  be  written  with  a 
hyphen  whether  used  as  adjectives  or  nouns  —  as, 
"  thirty-one  yards,"  ^^ fifty-five  cents,"  etc. 

^  Style  Book  of  the  Government  Printing  Office,  pages  91,  92. 


ADJECTIVES   AND  ADVERBS  65 

Compound  adjectives  containing  the  words  above,  ill, 
well,  and  so  are  written  with  a  hyphen  when  they  stand 
before  the  word  they  modify,  but  not  otherwise.  For  ex- 
ample, we  may  say,  "  a  well-educated  man  "  or  "  The  man 
is  well  educated J^  But  an  adverb  ending  with  ly  is  not 
usually  joined  to  the  adjective  which  it  modifies  —  as,  "a 
neatly  written  advertisement.'' 

The  following  compounds  are  so  frequently  used  that 
you  should  note  them  carefully: 

above-named  well-educated 

above-mentioned  well-informed 

ill-natured  well-known 

ill-bred  so-called 

Note  also  that  the  following  are  written  with  a  hyphen: 

half-hearted  first-class 

half-witted  second-class 

whole-souled  high-class 

whole-hearted  high-grade 

first-rate  high-flown 

self-controlled  high-handed 

Sometimes  a  group  of  words  are  used  together  as  an 
adjective.  In  such  cases  they  should  be  written  with 
hyphens  —  thus: 

ready-to  wear  clothes 
up-to-date  prices 
made-to-order  garments 
out-of-town  customers 
heart-to-heart  talk 

Read  the  following  sentences  containing  compound  ad- 
jectives and  learn  to  use  a  hyphen  in  all  such  expressions. 


66  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

1.  Mr.  Graves  gave  us  his  thirty-day  note. 

2.  We  still  have  on  hand  a  number  of  all-wool  dresses. 

3.  Browning  &  King  handle  high-class  men's  clothing. 

4.  Mr.  Wray  has  an  up-to-date  print  shop. 

5.  A  first-class  salesman  should  make  a  large  salary. 

6.  Our  mail-order  department  is  most  efficient. 

7.  Mr.  Hert  was  graduated  from  a  well-known  business  college. 

8.  Amber-colored  goggles  will  protect  your  eyes. 

9.  We  call  your  attention  to  our  sale  of  ladies'  ready-to-wear 

garments. 
10.  Our  store  provides  many  accommodations  for  out-of-town 
customers. 


LESSON  SEVENTEEN 
Adjectives  and  Adverbs  {Continued) 

PLACING   OF   ADJECTIVES   AND   ADVERBS 

Adjectives  and  adverbs  should  be  so  placed  that  there 
can  be  no  doubt  as  to  what  they  modify.  Generally  they 
should  stand  as  close  as  possible  to  the  word  or  phrase  to 
which  they  belong.  Perhaps  the  most  common  error  is 
the  misplacing  of  the  adverbs  only,  merely,  almost,  and 
similar  words.     Note  the  errors  in  the  following  sentences: 

1.  I  only  had  three  dollars. 

2.  Sickness  merely  was  an  excuse  for  his  absence  from  work. 

3.  Mr.  Hughes  almost  answered  all  the  questions. 

4.  Mr.   Dunn    nearly  missed  all  the  problems  in  commercial 

arithmetic. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  how  much  more  effective  these 
sentences  become  when  the  adverbs  are  correctly  placed  — 
thus: 

1.  I  had  only  three  dollars. 

2.  Sickness  was  merely  an  excuse  for  his  absence  from  work. 

3.  Mr.  Hughes  answered  almost  all  the  questions. 

4.  Mr.   Dunn  missed  nearly  all  the  problems  in  commercial 

arithmetic. 

THE  DOUBLE  NEGATIVE 

Such  words  as  no,  not,  never,  nothing,  none,  and  no- 
where are  called  negatives.  The  words  hardly  and  scarcely 
are  also  treated  as  such. 

67 


68  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

The  following  sentences  are  written  correctly.  Note 
that  each  has  but  one  negative: 

1.  The  new  clerk  did  not  do  his  work  well. 

2.  Miss  Holt  hadn't  any  money  for  expenses. 

3.  I  saw  no  one  in  the  office.    (Not  'T  didn't  see  nobody") 

4.  After  that  I  never  told  anyone  a  lie. 

5.  Mr.  Brown  hadn't  invested  more  than  two  thousand  dollars. 

6.  The  student  couldn't  post  the  items  from  the  journal  cor- 

rectly.   (Not  couldn't  hardly) 

7.  We  couldn't  see  anybody  at  the  secretary's  desk.    (Not  "We 

couldn't  see  nobody.") 

8.  There  was  scarcely  any  paper  for  the  exercise  in  discounts. 

(Not  ''There  was  not  scarcely  no  paper.") 

Two  negatives  should  not  be  used  in  the  same  sentence. 
For  example  it  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  I  couldn't  see  nothing. 

2.  We  never  told  nobody. 

3.  I  can't  hardly  write. 

4.  I  never  did  nothing  to  nobody. 

5.  Miss  Hartnett  couldn't  scarcely  find  enough  paper. 

6.  I  can't,  I  don't  think. 

Such  sentences  as  the  foregoing  contain  the  so-called 
double  negative,  which  should  be  carefully  avoided. 

It  is  a  mistake  to  use  never  as  an  ordinary  negative  to 
take  the  place  of  not.  It  may,  however,  be  used  occa- 
sionally to  express  emphatic  negation  —  as,  "Never  fear." 
It  is  incorrect  to  say,  "  I  never  brought  my  bank  book." 
Say  rather,  "  I  did  not  bring  my  bank  book." 

The  following  sentences  are  written  correctly,  each  con- 
taining but  a  single  negative.  Read  them  carefully  until 
you  are  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  correct  expressions. 


ADJECTIVES  AND   ADVERBS  69 

1.  We  had  no  money  to  spare. 

2.  Miss  McConnel  did  nothing  but  get  out  the  day's  corre- 

spondence. 

3.  The  boy  could  hardly  speak. 

4.  I  don't  say  anything  while  taking  dictation. 

5.  There  wasn't  anyone  who  could  forecast  the  market. 

6.  There  was  scarcely  enough  ink  in  the  wells. 

7.  The  children  could  hardly  endure  work  in  the  factory. 

8.  We  could  never  forget  that  day  in  New  York. 

9.  I  didn't  tell  anything  that  was  in  the  letters  dictated  to  me. 
10.  I  think  the  trial  balance  will  not  reveal  any  errors.     (Not 

**The  trial  balance  will  not  reveal  any  errors,  I  don't 
think.") 


LESSON  EIGHTEEN 

Confusion  of  Adjectives  and  Adverbs 

Many  errors  in  usage  arise  from  the  confusion  of  adjec- 
tives and  adverbs.  In  order  to  prevent  this,  you  must 
understand  thoroughly  the  difference  between  these  parts 
of  speech. 

In  general,  adjectives  belong  to  the  subject  or  object,  and 
adverbs  to  the  predicate.  Sometimes,  however,  an  ad- 
verb modifies  an  adjective  or  another  adverb  —  as,  "A 
remarkably  effective  sales  letter  was  sent  to  all  our  cus- 
tomers.'' In  this  illustration,  remarkably  modifies  the 
adjective  effective.  If  you  wish  to  describe  or  limit  the  sub- 
ject, use  an  adjective  —  as,  ''The  salesman's  voice  sounds 
harsh.^'  Here  harsh  modifies  voice.  If  you  wish  to  indi- 
cate the  manner  of  an  action,  use  an  adverb  —  as,  "He 
spoke  harshly  to  his  customer. "    Here  harshly  modifies  spoke. 

Most  verbs  express  action  of  some  kind  and  are,  there- 
fore, followed  by  adverbs.  There  are,  however,  a  few  that 
do  not  express  action,  and  these  are  followed  usually  by 
adjectives  telling  something  about  the  subject.  These 
verbs  are  be,  become,  look,  appear,  seem,  etc.^  The  list  is 
short  and  should  be  memorized.  Note  carefully  the  fol- 
lowing sentences  in  which  adjectives  are  used  after  these 
words: 

1.  Your  investment  is  safe. 

2.  The  surplus  fund  became  very  large, 

3.  Our  business  men  look  prosperous. 

1  Scott:  Practical  English,  pages  93-94. 
70 


CONFUSION  OF  ADJECTIVES  AND  ADVERBS        71 

4.  A  successful  salesman  appears  happy. 

5.  An  investment  in  Liberty  Bonds  seems  desirable. 

Certain  verbs  related  to  the  senses  —  such  as  sound, 
feel,  taste,  and  smell  —  also  take  adjectives  after  them  — 
thus: 

1.  The  customer's  complaint  sounds  reasonable. 

2.  Miss  Price  felt  happy  in  her  new  position. 

3.  All  Queen  Brand  Jam  tastes  sweet. 

4.  The  flowers  she  had  for  sale  smelled  fragrant. 

Sometimes  the  verbs  grow,  turn,  and  fall  take  adjectives 
after  them.     Note  carefully  the  following  sentences: 

1.  Mr.  Scott's  creditors  grew  impatient. 

2.  The  grass  turned  brown. 

3.  All  of  our  clerks  fell  ill. 

Even  verbs  that  express  action  may  take  an  adjective 
after  them  when  the  sense  requires  it  —  as,  "  The  sun  rose 
bright  and  warm.^'  There  are,  however,  not  many  cases 
of  this  kind. 

Study  carefully  the  distinctions  in  the  use  of  the  follow- 
ing words  and,  if  necessary,  consult  the  dictionary: 

Good,  well.  As  a  rule  good  is  used  to  describe  a  person 
or  thing,  while  well  tells  how  something  is  done.  In  other 
words,  good  is  an  adjective  and  well  an  adverb.  Some- 
times, however,  well  is  used  as  an  adjective  to  describe 
a  state  of  health  —  as,  "  Our  superintendent  is  well  today." 
The  following  sentences  illustrate  the  correct  use  of  these 
words: 

1.  Our  department  has  a  good  manager. 

2.  Every  employee  should  do  his  work  well. 


72  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Most,  almost.  Almost  is  an  adverb;  most,  an  adjective 
or  an  adverb.  Use  almost  in  the  sense  of  nearly.  Most, 
as  an  adverb,  means  in  the  highest  degree  or  chiefly.  It  is 
therefore  wrong  to  say  most  always,  most  any,  etc.  These 
words  are  correctly  used  in  the  following  sentences: 

1.  The  company's  resources  were  almost  exhausted. 

2.  Most  municipal  bonds  are  desirable  as  an  investment. 

Near,  nearly.  If  you  remember  that  nearly  is  the  ad- 
verbial form,  you  should  have  no  difficulty  with  these 
words.  Do  not  say,  "  Brown  is  not  near  so  successful  in 
business  as  Jones."  The  correct  expression  is  "  Brown 
is  not  nearly  so  successful  in  business  as  Jones." 

Previous,  previously.  Remember  that  previously  is  the 
adverbial  form.  Do  not  say  previously  to  that  time,  pre- 
viously to  June  lo,  etc.,  but  previous  to  that  time,  previous 
to  June  lo,  etc. 

Bad,  badly.  Badly  should  be  used  only  as  an  adverb, 
but  sometimes  it  is  difficult  to  decide  whether  an  adverb 
or  an  adjective  should  be  used  in  a  given  case.  For  ex- 
ample, should  you  say,  "  The  mail  clerk  had  a  severe  cold 
and  felt  had  "  or  "  The  mail  clerk  had  a  severe  cold  and 
felt  badly  "?  Grammatical  authorities  permit  the  use  of 
had  in  such  sentences  when  speaking  of  one's  physical  con- 
dition and  hadly  when  speaking  of  one's  emotions,^  but 
from  the  standpoint  of  good  taste  it  is  better  to  say  ill  in 
the  former  case,  and  unkindly  in  the  latter.  The  following 
sentences  illustrate  the  correct  use  of  these  words: 

*  Genung  and  Hanson:  Outlines  of  Composition  and  Rheto  ic. 


CONFUSION  OF  ADJECTIVES  AND  ADVERBS       73 

1.  Mr.  Bland  ate  too  much  and  feels  had. 

2.  The  secretary  feels  hadly  toward  some  of  his  competitors  be- 

cause they  have  taken  unfair  advantage  of  him. 

One  of  the  most  common  errors  in  English  is  the  use  of 
hadly  for  very  much  or  greatly.  Do  not  say,  "  I  wanted  to 
make  the  sale  hadly.'' 

All  right.  The  expression  all  right  should  always  be 
written  as  two  words.     There  is  no  such  word  as  alright. 

All  ready,  and  already.  In  the  first  of  these  expressions 
ready  is  an  adjective  meaning  prepared  or  supplied  with 
what  is  needed  —  as,  "  Are  the  papers  all  ready  to  be 
filed?  "  Already  is  an  adverb  meaning  heforehand  or  hy 
this  time  or  the  time  mentioned  —  as,  "  The  fund  has  already 
been  exhausted." 

The  following  sentences  will  show  some  of  the  common 
errors  in  the  use  of  adjectives  and  adverbs.  In  the  second 
column  you  will  find  the  correct  expressions. 

Incorrect  Correct 

We  are  desirous  of  having  a  We  desire  to  have  a  confer- 

conference  with  you.  ence  with  you. 

We    wrote    something    more  We    wrote    somewhat    more 

than  fifty  letters.  than  fifty  letters. 

Miss  Meyers  bought  an  aw-  Miss  Meyers  bought  a  very 

fully  pretty  hat.  (or  unusually  or  remarkably) 

pretty  hat. 

Various  customers  asked  to  Many  (or  several)  customers 

see  our  new  styles  of  spring  asked  to  see  our  new  styles  of 

suits.  spring  suits. 

We  have  sold  quite  a  few  of  We    have    sold    several    (or 

these  suits.  many)  of  these  suits. 


74 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


Incorrect 
We  have  for  sale  a  number 
of  elegant  fifteen-dollar  dresses. 


Our  sales  fell  off  terribly  in 
August. 

The  firm  has  sold  over  fifty 
machines. 

Mr.  White  hunted  all  over  for 
the  check. 

Relative  to  your  offer  of 
March  lo. 


Correct 

We  have  for  sale  a  number 
of  beautiful  (or  handsome  or 
fashionable)  fifteen-dollar 
dresses. 

Our  sales  fell  off  a  great  deal 
(or  greatly)  in  August. 

The  firm  has  sold  more  than 
fifty  machines. 

Mr.  White  hunted  every- 
where for  the  check. 

With  reference  to  your  offer 
of  March  lo. 


Look  up  the  meanings  of  the  following  words  in  the 
dictionary  and  use  them  correctly  in  sentences : 


1.  various 

2.  limited 

3.  quite 


4.  evinced 

5.  restricted 

6.  exquisite 


7.  delighted 

8.  delicious 

9.  wonderful 


LESSON  NINETEEN 

Comparison 

Most  adjectives  and  many  adverbs  have  three  forms  to 
denote  different  degrees  of  comparison  —  as,  large^  larger^ 
largest;  soon,  sooner,  soonest.  The  first  form,  which  does 
not  really  suggest  comparison  at  all,  is  commonly  called 
the  positive  degree;  the  second,  the  comparative  degree;  and 
the  third,  the  superlative  degree. 

The  comparative  degree  should  be  used  in  comparing 
two  things  or  sets  of  things  —  thus : 

1.  A  government  bond  is  safer  than  a  corporation  bond. 

2.  Our  prices  are  lower  than  yours. 

The  superlative  degree  should  be  used  in  comparing 
three  or  more  things  —  thus: 

1.  Liberty  bonds  are  the  safest  investment  in  the  world. 

2.  Lumber  reached  its  highest  price  in  1920. 

In  spite  of  the  foregoing  rules,  good  writers  sometimes 
use  the  superlative  when  only  two  things  are  compared. ^ 
For  example,  you  will  find  such  sentences  as  "  Henry  is 
the  tallest  of  the  two."  Hall  says  that  the  comparative 
degree  is  on  the  road  to  extinction  except  before  than. 
Lounsbury,  Carpenter,  and  Baskerville  and  Sewell  defend 
the  use  of  the  superlative  in  comparing  two  things,  while 
Hill,  Genung,  and  Herrick  and  Damon  favor  a  rigid  appH- 
cation  of  the  foregoing  rules.  Though  the  rule  is  often 
disregarded  by  good  writers,  it  is  better  to  use  the  com- 
parative when  two  things  or  sets  of  things  are  compared. 

Many  adjectives  and  adverbs  are  compared  by  the  use 
*  J.  Leslie  Hall:  English  Usage. 
IS     ■ 


76  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

of  more  and  most,  or  less  and  least  as  the  case  may  require 
—  as,  beautiful,  more  beautiful,  most  beautiful.  This  method 
is  used  when  the  addition  of  er  or  est  would  not  be  pleasing 
in  sound.  1  Carpenter  says  that  the  ear  alone  should  de- 
cide which  ought  to  be  used.^  Some  of  the  most  noted 
writers  of  prose,  however,  have  violated  this  rule.  Thack- 
eray used  handsomest,  immensest,  and  wonderfulest,  and 
Ruskin  patientest,  and  sorrowfulest.  You  will  find,  how- 
ever, that  most  modern  writers  use  more  and  most  whenever 
it  will  prevent  a  series  of  harsh  or  unpleasant  sounds. 
Most  handsome,  most  immense,  most  wonderful,  most  patient, 
and  most  sorrowful  are  the  better  forms. 

Adverbs  ending  in  ly  are  compared  by  the  use  of  more  and 
most  —  as,  slowly,  more  slowly,  most  slowly.  Most  adjectives 
in  /y  —  such  as  lowly,  friendly,  lovely,  and  manly  —  form  the 
comparative  and  superlative  by  the  addition  of  er  and  est. 

The  following  words  do  not  admit  of  comparison :  double, 
square,  round,  horizontal,  perpendicular,  perfect,  ideal,  and 
infallible.  If  an  object  is  square  or  round,  it  is  inaccurate  to 
say  that  it  could  be  more  square  or  round.  You  should  say 
more  nearly  square,  more  nearly  round,  more  nearly  perfect,  etc. 

Many  errors  consist  in  the  use  of  double  comparison. 
You  have  no  doubt  heard  the  following  expressions :  worser, 
lesser,  etc.  Of  course,  the  correct  forms  are  worse  and 
less.  The  double  forms  furthermore,  furthermost,  and  utter- 
most, however,  are  approved.  The  expressions  more 
preferable,  more  superior,  and  most  favorite  involve  double 
comparison,  and  hence  should  be  avoided. 

*  Baskerville  and  Sewell:  School  Grammar,  page  87. 

*  Carpenter:  Principles  of  English  Grammar ,  page  103. 


COMPARISON 


77 


Some  adjectives  are  compared  irregularly.    The  follow- 
ing forms  should  be  carefully  learned: 


Positive 
bad,  or  ill 
good,  or  well 
far 


late 


little 

many,  or  much 

near 

old 


Comparative 
worse 
better 

farther  (distance) 
further  (additional) 
later 
latter 
less 
more 
nearer 
older 
elder 


Superlative 
worst 
best 
farthest 
furthest 
latest 
last 
least 
most 

nearest,  or  next 
oldest 
eldest 


Latter  and  former  are  now  generally  used  in  speaking  of 
two  things,  the  latter  being  the  one  mentioned  second  and 
the  former  the  one  mentioned  first.  You  should,  however, 
use  these  forms  only  when  necessary,  as  it  is  easy  to  acquire 
the  habit  of  overworking  them. 

So-called  mixed  comparisons  should  generally  be  avoided. 
For  example,  it  is  incorrect  to  say,  "  Mr.  Jones  is  as  good 
a  salesman  if  not  better  than  Mr.  Brown."  Certainly  no 
careful  writer  would  say,  "  Mr.  Jones  is  as  good  a  salesman 
than  Mr.  Brown."  Say,  "  Mr.  Jones  is  as  good  a  sales- 
man as  Mr.  Brown,  if  not  better."  It  is  also  an  error  to 
say,  "  John  Wanamaker  is  one  of  the  greatest,  if  not  the 
greatest,  merchant  this  countr}^  has  produced."  You  should 
say,  "  John  Wanamaker  is  one  of  the  greatest  merchants 
this  country  has  produced,  if  not  the  greatest."  The 
mixed  comparison  is  thus  avoided  by  the  transposition  of 
the  phrases  or  clauses. 


78  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

When  one  thing  or  one  group  of  things  is  compared  with 
another  of  the  same  sort,  they  must  be  clearly  separated 
in  meaning.  This  can  be  done  whenever  necessary  by 
adding  the  word  other  —  thus : 

1.  Amber-colored  goggles  will  protect  your  eyes  from  the  sun 

better  than  any  other  glasses. 

2.  Miss  Young  is  more  accurate  than  any  other  person  in  the 

auditing  department. 

Since  amber-colored  goggles  are  a  kind  of  glasses,  it  is 
necessary  to  add  the  word  other. 

There  is  a  great  deal  of  uncertainty  about  the  correct 
use  of  as  —  as  and  so  —  as.  Good  usage  favors  the  use 
of  as  —  as  in  equal  comparisons  and  so  —  as  in  unequal 
comparisons. 1     Note  the  following  sentences: 

1.  Shaw- Walker's  trade  is  as  large  as  ours. 

2.  Shaw- Walker's  trade  is  not  so  large  as  ours. 

Notice  that  unequal  comparisons  are  made  by  the  addi- 
tion of  a  negative.  You  may,  therefore,  find  it  easy  to 
remember  that  so  —  as  should  be  used  in  preference  to 
as  —  as  in  sentences  where  a  negative  occurs.  Read  these 
sentences  carefully  until  you  can  use  the  correct  expression 
without  difficulty: 

1.  Mr.  Stone  is  not  so  careful  as  his  partner  in  selecting  his  in- 

vestments. 

2.  The  supply  of  raw  cotton  is  scarcely  so  great  as  that  of  1920. 

3.  No  one  else  is  so  well  known  to  business  men  as  Mr.  Schwab. 

4.  We  have  not  received  so  many  orders  during  the  present 

month  as  we  did  last  year. 

5.  Neither  of  the  applicants  was  so  well  prepared  for  the  work 

as  Mr.  Taylor. 

*  McLean,  Blaisdell,  and  Morrow:  Steps  in  English,  Book  II,  page  216. 


LESSON  TWENTY 

Similar  Adjectives  and  Adverbs  Distinguished 

Since  every  person  should  acquire  an  accurate  and  varied 
vocabulary,  your  attention  is  again  directed  to  the  study 
of  certain  words  commonly  misused.  It  is,  of  course,  im- 
possible to  present  here  a  complete  list  of  similar  words. 
They  constitute  a  study  of  importance  and  would  require 
a  large  book.  The  intention  of  the  lesson  is  to  present 
a  few  of  the  most  common  illustrations  and  to  show  how 
such  words  can  be  studied,  with  the  aid  of  a  good  diction- 
ary. All  definitions  are  taken  from  the  New  Standard 
Dictionary.^ 

CONTINUAL,    CONTINUOUS 

ContinuaL  Renewed  in  regular  succession;  oft'en  repeated;  very 
frequent  —  as,  ^^ continual  interruptions." 

Continuous.  Connected,  extended,  or  prolonged  without  separa- 
tion or  interruption  of  sequence;  unbroken;  uninterrupted;  unin- 
termitted. 

Continuous  describes  that  which  is  absolutely  without  pause;  con- 
tinual, that  which  often  intermits,  but  as  regularly  begins  again. 

1.  Continual  interruptions  made  it  impossible  to  complete  the 

work  according  to  contract. 

2.  Mr.  Johnson's  connections  with  this  concern  have  covered  fifteen 

years  of  continuous  service. 

FEW,   LESS 

Few.    Small  or  limited  in  number;  not  many;  only  a  small  num- 
ber of. 
.  Less.    I.  Smaller,  as  in  capacity,  quantity,  or  scope;  not  so  large, 

*  Copyright  by  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Company,  New  York  and  London. 

79 


8o  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

great,  or  much;  used  as  the  comparative  of  little  —  as,  'Hess  time." 
2.  Lacking  full  number  or  quantity;  smaller  by  subtraction  or 
omission  —  as,  ''a  year  less  a  month."  3.  Of  smaller  import,  of 
slighter  consequence;  inferior. 

Vse  few  when  speaking  of  numbers;  less,  when  speaking  of  capac- 
ity, quantity,  or  scope. 

1.  We  have  received  fewer  orders  than  usual.     (Do  not  say  less 

orders  unless  you  wish  to  indicate  their  size  rather  than  the 
number  of  them.) 

2.  There  is  less  demand  for  cotton  goods  than  there  was  a  year 

ago. 

GRAND,   SPLENDID 

Grand,  i.  Of  imposing  character  or  aspect;  magnificent  in  pro- 
portion, extent,  or  belongings  —  as,  ''grand  scenery  ";  "a  grand  pal- 
ace." 2.  Characterized  by  striking  excellence  or  impressive  dignity; 
inspiring  —  as, '  'a.  grand  idea  " ;  "a  grand  oration. "  3 .  Preeminent  by 
reason  of  great  abihty  or  high  character;  noble;  worthy  of  exalted 
respect  —  as,  "the  grand  old  man." 

Splendid,  i.  Giving  out  or  reflecting  brilliant  light;  brightly 
shining;  glittering.  2.  Magnificent;  imposing;  gorgeous  — as,  "a. 
splendid  pageant."  3.  Inspiring  the  imagination  or  causing  emo- 
tions of  great  admiration;  illustrfous;  grand;  glorious;  heroic  —  as, 
"splendid  achievement." 

The  foregoing  definitions  make  clear  the  distinction  in  meaning 
between  these  words.  You  should  not  allow  yourselves  to  fall  into 
the  habit  of  speaking  of  everything  that  pleases  you  as  grand  or 
splendid,  though  sometimes  either  is  correct. 

These  words  are  correctly  used  in  the  following  expressions 

1.  grand  jury  i.  splendid  display 

2.  grand  review  of  troops  2.  splendid  necklaces 

3.  grand  cathedral  3.  splendid  pageant 

4.  grand  opera  4.  splendid  parade 

5.  grand  river  5.  splendid  sunset 

6.  grand  old  man  6.  splendid  costumes 


SIMILAR  ADJECTIVES  AND  ADVERBS  8 1 

7.  grand  result  7.  splendid  coronation  robes 

8.  grand  bridge  .  8.  splendid  stone  (diamond) 

9.  grand  fireworks  9.  splendid  achievement 
10.  grand  achievement  10.  splendid  scenery 

HARDLY,   SCARCELY 

Hardly,  i.  In  a  hard  or  rough  manner;  rigorously;  harshly; 
oppressively;  severely;  unfavorably  —  as,  "to  deal  hardly  with 
one."  2.  With  difiiculty  or  great  pains  —  as,  ''Seamen's  wages  are 
hardly  earned."  3.  Almost  not;  not,  with  few  exceptions;  not 
wholly;  barely:  noting  that  the  qualified  clause  is  untrue,  but  lacks 
little  of  being  true  —  as,  '  'He  had  hardly  escaped  when  he  was  re- 
captured." 4.  Not  quite;  not,  though  almost:  a  euphemism  for 
not,  noting  that  the  qualified  clause  is  untrue,  though  approaching 
very  nearly  to  truth  —  as,  "That  is  hardly  the  way  to  do  it." 
5.  Improbably;    not  likely  —  as,  "He  will  hardly  take  such  a  risk." 

Scarcely,  i.  Only  just;  with  difficulty  or  with  little  lapse  of 
time;  barely:  signifying  that  the  qualified  attribute  or  action  is 
true,  but  lacks  little  of  being  untrue  —  as,  "I  had  scarcely  spoken." 
2.  Not  quite;  hardly:  negativing  the  qualified  word,  but  asserting 
that  it  lacks  but  little  of  truth  —  as,  "You  will  scarcely  maintain 
that  proposition." 

Scarcely  is  often  improperly  used  for  hardly.  In  strict  usage 
scarcely  has  reference  to  quantity;  hardly,  to  degree.  You  may 
rightly  say,  "It  is  scarcely  dun  hour  to  nightfall"  and  "He  will  hardly 
finish  his  task  before  nightfall." 

Do  not  say  scarcely  —  than  —  as,  ^'Scarcely  had  I  recognized  him 
than  he  addressed  me."    In  such  sentences,  use  no  sooner  —  than. 

HEALTHY,   HEALTHFUL 

Healthy,  i.  Having  health;  being  in  a  condition  of  health; 
sound;  well  —  as,  "a  healthy  body."  2.  Conducing  or  tending  to 
health,  etc. 

Healthful.  Efficacious  in  promoting  health  or  causing  health; 
sanative;  salubrious  —  as,  "a  healthful  climate." 


82  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Healthy  is  most  correctly  used  to  signify  possessing  or  enjoying 
health  or  its  results  —  as,  '^  a.  healthy  person  ";  ''a  healthy  condition." 
Healthful  signifies  promoting  health,  or  tending,  or  adapted  to  con- 
fer, preserve,  or  promote  health  —  as,  "a  healthful  climate." 

MAD,   ANGRY 

Mad.  I.  Disordered  in  mind;  lunatic;  insane;  crazy.  2.  Sub- 
ject to  overmastering  emotion;  excited  intensely  or  beyond  self-con- 
trol; inflamed  or  infatuated,  as  with  jealousy,  terror,  or  grief.  Specif, 
I.  Strongly  moved  by  desire  or  curiosity;  eager;  infatuated  —  as, 
^'mad  for  gold."  2.  Wild  with  animal  spirits;  extravagantly  gay. 
3.  Distracted  with  trouble  or  anxiety,  as  mad  with  grief;  angry; 
furious;  enraged.  4.  Uncontrollable,  as  an  animal  through  rage  or 
disease,  especially  rabies.  5.  Proceeding  from  or  indicating  a  dis- 
ordered mind;  rash,  as  a  mad  project.  6.  Tumultuous  or  uncon- 
trollable in  movement  or  action:  said  of  things,  as  a  mad  torrent. 

Angry,  i.  FeeHng  anger;  moved  by  violent  resentment  or  indig- 
nation against  the  agent  or  cause  of  the  trouble  —  as,  "angry  with 
his  brother."  2.  Showing  or  wearing  the  marks  of  anger;  caused, 
occasioned,  or  aflfected  by  or  as  by  anger  —  as,  ''an  angry  sky." 
3.  Med.:    inflamed  —  as,  "an  angry  sore."    4.  Vexed,  grieved,  etc. 

Mad  in  the  sense  of  angry  is  colloquial.  Do  not  say,  ''You  make 
me  mad"  or  "I  am  mud  at  you."  In  about  nine  cases  out  of  ten  the 
correct  word  is  angry.  You  may  very  properly  speak  of  a  mad 
man,  meaning  an  insane  person,  of  a  mad  scheme,  or  of  a  mad  dog. 

NOWHERE,   NOWHERES 

Nowhere,  somewhere,  and  some  place  are  correct.  Avoid  no- 
wheres,  somewheres,  and  someplace.  Do  not  say  nowhere  near  for  not 
nearly. 

REAL,   VERY 

Real.  I.  Having  actual  existence;  not  theoretical  or  imaginary 
—  as,  "That  is  a  real  instance  of  success."  2.  Being  in  fact  accord- 
ing to  appearance  or  claim;   genuine;  not  artificial,  false,  spurious 


SIMILAR  ADJECTIVES  AND   ADVERBS  83 

—  as,  ''real  diamonds."  3.  Philos.  Having  actual  being,  whether 
spiritual  or  material;  etc.  4.  Law.  (i)  Relating  or  pertaining  to, 
or  arising  out  of,  lands.  (2)  Civ.  Law.  Relating  to  or  connected 
with  things,  including  things  movable  and  immovable,  as  distin- 
guished from  persons. 

Very.  i.  In  a  high  degree;  in  a  large  measure;  extremely;  ex- 
ceedingly —  as,  ''very  generous." 

Do  not  say,  "I  am  very  pleased  to  meet  you"  or  ''He  was  very 
provoked.''  You  should  say,  ''I  am  very  much  pleased''  or  ''He  was 
very  muck  provoked." 

Avoid  the  very  common  error  of  using  the  adjective  real  for 
very.  The  foregoing  definitions  leave  no  doubt  about  the  distinction  in 
meaning  between  the  two.  Do  not  say,  "This  book  is  real  deep." 
Say,  "This  book  is  very  deep."  Here  are  several  incorrect  expres- 
sions: "real  tired,"  "real  hungry,"  "real  pretty,"  "real  busy,"  and 
"real  unjust."     Very  or  really  is  correct  in  each  case. 

RESPECTFULLY,   RESPECTIVELY 

Respectfully.    With  due  respect. 

Respectively.  As  singly  or  severally  considered;  singly  in  the 
order  designated  —  as,  "John,  James,  and  William  were  elected 
president,  secretary,  and  treasurer  respectively." 

In  closing  a  letter  in  which  Yours  respectfully  is  to  be  used,  be 
especially  careful  not  to  use  respectively. 

SOME,   SOMEWHAT 

Some.  I.  Of  indeterminate  quantity;  of  indefinite  number  or 
amount  —  as,  "He  bought  some  land  in  Texas."  2.  Appreciable 
yet  limited  in  degree  or  amount;  moderate  —  as,  "The  report  is  in 
some  measure  true."  3.  Conceived  or  thought  of,  but  not  definitely 
known:  used  to  express  ignorance  or  uncertainty  in  regard  to  the 
person  or  thing  referred  to  —  as,  "Some  person  drove  past"  or  "He 
may  fall  into  some  ditch."  4.  Logic.  Part  at  least;  etc.  5.  Colloq. 
Of  considerable  account;  noteworthy  or  eminent. 

As  an  adverb  the  word  som£.  has  the  following  meanings:    i.  Colloq. 


84  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

In  an  approximate  degree;  as  nearly  as  maybe  estimated;  about  — 
as,  "Some  eighty  people  were  present."  2.  Dial,  or  Prov.  Some- 
what —  as,  ''He  was  some  tired"  or  "I  like  it  some." 

Somewhat.  Adv.  In  some  degree;  to  some  extent  —  sls,  *' some- 
what hastily,"  "somewhat  more  than  a  year  ago." 

Remember,  therefore,  that  some  should  not  be  used  in  the  sense 
of  somewhat.  Do  not  say,  ''Business  is  some  better  this  year."  It  is 
incorrect  to  say,  "Shipments  were  delayed  some''  for  'Shipments 
were  delayed  somewhat." 

NICE,   AGREEABLE 

Nice.  I.  Characterized  by  discrimination  and  judgment;  dis- 
cerning—  as,  "a  nice  criticism."  2.  Refined  and  pure  in  tastes  and 
habits;  refined;  hence  overparticular;  dainty;  modest;  fastidious; 
etc. 

From  the  above  definition  it  is  clear  that  nice  in  the  sense  of 
agreeable  or  attractive  is  colloquial.  All  such  expressions  as  "nice 
time,"  "nice  man,"  "nice  business,"  etc.  are  incorrect. 

APT,  LIKELY,  LIABLE 

Apt.  I.  Having  a  natural  or  habitual  tendency  (to);  liable, 
likely,  or  given  (to) — as,  "Iron  is  apt  to  rust."  2.  Adapted  by 
nature;  naturally  gifted;  fitted;  able  —  as,  "apt  to  rule." 
3.  Adapted  to  the  purpose  —  as,  "an  apt  illustration." 

Likely,  i.  Apparently  true  or  real;  easily  credible;  plausible; 
probable  —  as,  "a  likely  explanation."  2.  Reasonably  expected; 
showing  a  tendency;  etc. 

Liable,  i.  Exposed,  as  to  damage,  penalty,  expense,  burden,  or 
anything  unpleasant  or  dangerous;  open;  contingently  subject; 
with  to  —  as,  "liable  to  insult  or  injury."  2.  Justly  or  legally  re- 
sponsible; answerable  —  as,  "The  endorser  is  liable."  3.  Having  a 
tendency,  inclination,  or  likelihood  (to  do  something  unfortunate  or 
undesirable);  likely  (with  unfavorable  sense) — as,  "All  men  are 
liable  to  err." 

There  are  some  places  in  which  these  words  are  exact  synonyms 


SIMILAR  ADJECTIVES   AND   ADVERBS  85 

and  one  may,  therefore,  be  used  for  the  other.  For  example,  you  will 
note  that  likely  is  given  as  one  of  the  meanings  of  liable  and  that 
both  likely  and  liable  are  given  as  synonyms  of  apt. 

Words  that  have  the  same  meaning  in  some  cases,  however,  have 
different  meanings  in  others,  and  the  selection  of  the  correct  word 
where  the  meanings  are  different  is  important. 

If  you  eliminate  the  first  definition  of  apt,  because  this  meaning 
of  the  word  is  the  same  as  one  of  the  meanings  of  the  words  liable 
and  likely,  you  get  its  distinctive  meanings,  naturally  gifted  and 
adapted  to  a  purpose.    Neither  liable  nor  likely  has  these  meanings. 

Similarly  in  the  first  two  definitions  of  liable  you  get  its  distinc- 
tive meanings,  exposed  to  danger  and  legally  responsible.  Neither  apt 
nor  likely  has  these  meanings. 

The  distinctive  meaning  of  likely  is  the  first  one  given  —  plaus- 
ible.   Neither  apt  nor  liable  has  this  meaning. 

So  much  for  the  distinctive  meanings  —  that  is,  the  place  where 
one  cannot  be  substituted  for  the  other.  But  even  where  the  mean- 
ings are  similar  there  is  a  slight  difference.  Apt  refers  to  a  natural 
tendency;  liable,  in  the  sense  of  likelihood,  refers  to  something  un- 
favorable; and  likely  refers  to  something  expected  merely.  Thus 
you  say  "Iron  is  apt  to  rust"  when  you  have  in  mind  its  natural 
chemical  qualities;  you  say  ''Men  are  liable  to  err"  when  you  have 
in  mind  an  undesirable  possibility;  and  you  say  "That  man  is 
likely  to  do  wrong"  when  you  have  in  mind  a  real  probabiUty. 
None  of  the  three  words  is  wrong  in  the  sentences  just  given,  but  the 
slight  shade  of  difference  in  them  is  worth  noting. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  similar  words  to  be  studied  with 
the  help  of  the  dictionary  or  a  good  book  of  synonyms: 

adequate,  enough,  sufficient  disinterested,  uninterested 

apparent,  seeming  due,  owing 

credible,  creditable  exceptionable,  exceptional 

delicious,  delightful  funny,  odd,  peculiar 

desirous,  anxious  human,  humane 


86 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 


ingenious,  ingenuous 
mutual,  common 
new,  novel,  modern 
noted,  notorious 
partly,  partially 
pitiable,  piteous,  pitiful 
plenty,  plenteous,  plentiful 


practicable,  practical 
sincere,  frank 
sure,  certain 

surprised,  astonished,  as- 
tounded 
valuable,  valued 


LESSON  TWENTY-ONE 

How  TO  Use  Prepositions  Correctly 

As  prepositions  have  different  shades  of  meaning,  they 
should  be  selected  with  care.  The  following  suggestions 
should  help  you  to  use  them  correctly: 

1.  Ordinarily  such  prepositions  as  in,  on,  at,  and  hy  de- 
note rest;  such  prepositions  as  to,  into,  unto,  toward,  from, 
and  a  few  others,  denote  motion. 

1.  The  telegram  is  lying  on  the  table. 

2.  The  messenger  walked  to  the  station. 

2.  In  denotes  position  or  presence  within;  into,  entrance. 

1.  All  employees  of  the  Crossett  Lumber  Company  live  in  the 

village. 

2.  A  stranger  came  into  the  office  to  inquire  for  work. 

3.  Between  should  be  used  with  reference  to  two  persons 
or  things;  among,  with  reference  to  three  or  more. 

1.  The   unsuccessful   man   divided   his  time  between  gambling 

and  speculation. 

2.  The  company  distributed  the  money  as  a  bonus  among  its 

employees. 

4.  Beside  means  by  the  side  of;   besides,  in  addition  to. 

1.  The  plaintiff  sat  beside  his  attorney. 

2.  Besides  ambition,  the  salesman  should  have  patience. 

5.  In  should  be  used  when  reference  is  made  to  the  in- 
terior of  any  place.  It  is  used  before  the  names  of  coun- 
tries or  districts  and  of  large  cities.  At  should  be  used 
generally  in  speaking  of  a  place  regarded  as  a  mere  local 
point,  such  as  a  village.^ 

1  Webster:  Nov  International  Dictionary. 
87 


88  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

1.  The  president  of  the  company  arrived  in  New   York   on 

Friday. 

2.  Our  agent  stopped  at  Lake  Village,  a  small  town  in  Arkan- 

sas. 

6.  On  and  upon  should  be  considered  as  absolute  syno- 
nyms, but  upon  is  more  emphatic.  Upon  is  also  the  proper 
word  to  use  with  depend  —  as,  ''Your  ability  in  any  line 
will  depend  upon  dozens  of  important  character  quahties." 

Some  crude  errors  in  the  use  of  prepositions  are  due  al- 
most wholly  to  carelessness.  These  consist  chiefly  of  the 
omission  of  a  necessary  preposition  or  the  addition  of  an 
unnecessary  one.  Do  not  omit  a  preposition  whenever  it 
is  necessary  to  the  grammatical  completeness  of  the  state- 
ment or  adds  clearness  or  emphasis.  For  example,  it  is 
incorrect  to  say,  ^'Any  size  envelope  will  be  satisfactory." 
Say,  "An  envelope  of  any  size  will  be  satisfactory."  It  is 
also  very  poor  usage  to  say,  "It  is  no  use,''  "It  is  no  avail/' 
"It  is  no  consequence,"  etc.  Note  the  gain  in  effective- 
ness when  stated  thus:  "  It  is  of  no  use,"  "  It  is  of  no  avail," 
"  It  is  of  no  consequence,"  etc.  Do  not  say,  "  Where  is  the 
telegram  at?"  or  "Why  did  you  do  it  for?"  In  both  cases 
much  is  gained  by  the  omission  of  at  and  for. 

Another  incorrect  expression,  limited  almost  wholly  to 
oral  speech,  is  off  of —  as,  "  The  copy  of  the  contract  fell 
off  of  the  table."  Here  the  word  of  should  be  omitted. 
Also  in  such  sentences  as  "  I  do  not  remember  of  his  mail- 
ing the  letter,"  the  word  of  is  not  permissible.  It  is  correct 
to  say,  "I  do  not  remember  his  mailing  the  letter." 

The  use  of  the  word  of  to  take  the  place  of  have  in  such 
expressions  as  could  of,  would  of,  should  of,  might  of,  may 


\ 


HOW   TO  USE  PREPOSITIONS   CORRECTLY         89 

(?/,  had  of,  and  must  of  is  inexcusably  bad.  The  correct 
expressions  are,  of  course,  could  have,  would  have,  should 
have,  might  have,  may  have,  had,  and  must  have. 

WORDS   FOLLOWED   BY   SPECIAL   PREPOSITIONS 

The  preposition  to  be  used  after  a  word  sometimes  de- 
pends upon  the  sense  in  which  the  word  is  used.  For 
example : 

Accommodate  with  a  desirable  or  needed  thing. 
My  banker  accommodated  me  with  a  loan. 

Accommodate  to,  to  adapt. 
They  accommodated  themselves  to  their  surroundings. 

Accused  of  crime  or  offense. 
The  treasurer  has  been  accused  of  embezzlement. 

Accused  by  a  person. 
The  young  man  was  accused  by  his  employer. 

Adapted  for  something  by  nature. 

The  rich  delta  land  was  adapted  for  cotton. 
Adapt  from  an  author. 

The  paragraph  was  adapted  from  Read's  "Salesmanship." 
Adapt  to  a  thing. 

Our  customers  became  adapted  to  the  new  high-price  level. 
Agree  to  a  plan,  a  proposal,  or  an  opinion. 

Edison  sometimes  agreed  to  the  plans  of  his  friends. 
Agree  with  a  person. 

Mr.  Perkins  agreed  with  me  that  an  investment  in  oil  is  unsafe. 
Agree  upon  a  decision. 

The  officers  of  the  company  agreed  upon  an  advertising  cam- 
paign. 
Angry  at  a  thing. 

The  customer  became  angry  at  my  sarcastic  remarks. 


po  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Angry  with  a  person. 

You  cannot  afford  to  become  angry  with  a  customer. 

Attend  to  business. 
The  manager  of  a  small  concern  frequently  attends  to  all  the 
business  of  his  office. 

Attend  upon  a  person. 
The  gentleman's  secretary  attended  upon  him  throughout  his 
visit  to  South  America. 

Attended  by  a  person. 
The  capitalist  was  attended  by  his  faithful  servant.  ' 

Attended  with  consequences. 
The  rainy  season  was  attended  with  heavy  losses  to  cotton. 

Beset  by  evils. 
Before  banks  became  numerous  many  business  men  were  be- 
set by  highwaymen. 

Beset  with  arguments. 
The  crafty  salesman  beset  his  customer  with  many  arguments. 

Communicate  to  a  person,  to  give  information  to. 
Through  extensive  advertising  we  have  communicated  to  the 
public  the  facts  about  the  merits  of  our  goods. 

Communicate  with  a  person,  to  speak  or  write  to. 
Should  you  need  additional  cars,  communicate  with  any  one 
of  our  salesmen. 

Compare  to  unHke  things. 
The  personality  of  a  salesman  may  be  compared  to  magnetism. 

Compare  with  like  things  or  similar  qualities. 
Our  rubber  goods  compare  favorably  with  those  of  any  other 
company. 

Consist  in,  to  have  the  substance,  foundation,  or  character. 
Tact  in  salesmanship  consists  in  the  ability  to  do  the  right 
thing  at  the  right  time. 


HOW  TO  USE  PREPOSITIONS  CORRECTLY  91 

Consist  of,  to  be  made  of  or  composed  of. 
Our  stock  of  goods  consists  of  dniigs  and  stationery. 

Confide  in,  to  trust  in. 
The  people  would  gladly  confide  in  men  like  Mr.  Straus. 

Confide  to,  to  trust  to. 
The  manager  confided  to  his  stenographer  several  important 
papers. 

Die  of  disease  (not  from  disease). 
In  1918-19  so  many  people  died  of  influenza  that  the  Iowa 
Bankers'  Life  Company  suspended  payment  of  dividends. 

Differ  from  a  person  or  thing  in  likeness. 
Our   new   Steel   Filing   equipment   difers  greatly  from  the 
wooden  one  we  have  been  using. 

Differ  with,  in  opinion. 
None  of  our  competitors  has  dared  to  difer  with  us  concerning 
the  merits  of  the  Chalmers  Sedan. 

Different  from  (not  difer ent  than  or  to). 
Your  work  in  the  office  is  different  from  mine.     Do  not  say 
"Your  work  in  the  office  is  difer  ent  than  mine." 

Part  from  a  person. 
It  was  hard  to  part  from  my  old  partner,  Mr.  Brown. 

Part  with  a  thing. 
A  salesman  must  make  his  article  of  merchandise  so  attrac- 
tive that  the  customer  will  be  ready  to  part  with  his  money. 

Remonstrate  against  a  thing. 
The  managers  of  the  large  department  stores  remonstrated 
against  the  closing  order  issued  by  the  Board  of  Health. 

Remonstrate  with  a  person. 
The  foreman  stopped  to  remonstrate  with  some  striking  work- 
men. 


92  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Taste  for  literature,  music,  art,  etc. 
Working  people  should  endeavor  to  cultivate  a  taste  for  good 
literature. 

Taste  of  food. 
The  taste  oj  pie  was  unknown  to  the  employees  at  the  lumber 

camps. 
Omit  oj  when  taste  is  used  as  a  verb  —  as,  ^^  Taste  the  pie." 


LESSON  TWENTY-TWO 

How  TO  Use  Conjunctions  Correctly 

The  most  common  conjunctions  are  —  and,  hut,  for,  or, 
nor,  and  neither.  And  should  be  used  only  to  connect 
words,  phrases,  or  clauses  that  express  equal  or  similar 
ideas;  hut,  to  connect  those  that  express  dissimilar  or  op- 
posite ones.  And  cannot,  therefore,  be  used  where  hut  is 
needed.  For  example,  it  is  incorrect  to  say,  "It  rained 
and  I  reached  the  office  at  the  usual  time."  Say,  "It 
rained,  hut  I  reached  the  office  at  the  usual  time."  And  is 
incorrectly  used  in  such  expressions  as  "Try  and  see  me." 
Say  "Try  to  see  me." 

The  use  of  too  many  and's  is  a  fault  that  renders  written 
work  unbearably  dull.  If  you  find  that  you  have  fallen 
into  the  "  and  "  habit,  cure  it  by  learning  to  use  the  fol- 
lowing substitutes:  also,  hesides,  again,  furthermore,  like- 
wise, moreover,  too,  presently,  in  addition  to. 

Conjunctions  are  sometimes  used  in  pairs.^  The  prin- 
cipal ones  so  used  appear  in  the  following  Hst: 

as  —  as  not  only  —  but  also 

both  —  and  so  —  as 

either  —  or  though  —  yet 

neither  —  nor  whether  —  or 

When  using  conjunctions  in  pairs,  remember  that  either 
should  be  followed  by  or  and  neither  by  nor.  It  is  a  common 
mistake  to  follow  neither  by  or.  For  example,  you  often 
hear  such  sentences  as  "  Neither  Mr.  Mills  or  I  secured  the 
position,"  instead  of  "Neither  Mr.  Mills  nor  I  secured  the 
position." 

1  Conjunctions  used  in  pairs  are  called  correlatives. 
9^ 


94  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Remember  that  so  —  as  should  be  used  when  inequality- 
is  expressed.  Inequality  is  generally  expressed  by  the  help 
of  a  negative  —  as,  "  Railroad  stocks  were  not  so  firm 
today  as  usual." 

When  using  conjunctions  in  pairs,  remember  that  they 
should  be  placed  as  near  as  possible  to  the  parts  of  the 
sentence  which  they  connect.  Note  that  this  is  true  of  the 
conjunctions  in  the  following  illustrations: 

1.  The  salesman  should  either  train  himself  or  seek  special  train- 

ing elsewhere. 

2.  This  separator  not  only  skims  closer  but  also  lasts  longer  than 

any  other  kind. 

3.  Not  only  must  you  know  all  about  your  goods,   but  also  all 

that  is  to  be  learned  about  your  competitor's  goods. 

Your  attention  has  been  called  to  the  fact  that  like  should 
not  be  used  for  as  if,  as  though,  or  as  to  introduce  a  clause. 
For  example,  you  should  avoid  such  sentences  as  the  fol- 
lowing: "  It  looks  like  the  price  of  lumber  would  rise  much 
higher." 

In  the  following  sentences  as,  as  if,  and  as  though  are 
used  correctly.     Like  would  be  incorrect. 

1.  It  looks  as  if  the  August  sales  will  be  large. 

2.  The  manager  speaks  as  though  he  were  angry. 

3.  Alice  filed  the  letters  precisely  as  she  was  instructed. 

Like  is  a  preposition.  In  the  following  sentences  it  is 
correctly  used : 

1.  The  success  of  our  advertising  campaign  seems  like  a  dream. 

2.  Like  all  other  kinds  of  electrical  work,  armature  winding  is  ex- 

tremely interesting. 

3.  Like  him,  every  clerk  had  his  particular  work  to  do. 


HOW  TO  USE  CONJUNCTIONS  CORRECTLY         95 

Unless  should  be  used  rather  than  without  or  except  to 
introduce  a  clause.     Without  and  except  are  prepositions. 

Do  not  say,  *'  Without  he  shows  more  interest,  he  will  not 
be  promoted,"  but,  "  Unless  he  shows  more  interest,  he  will 
not  be  promoted." 

It  is  also  incorrect  to  use  except  in  such  sentences  as 
"  The  abstract  shows  a  good  title  to  the  land,  except  there 
is  one  lien  unsatisfied."  Say,  ^^ Except  that  there  is  one 
lien  unsatisfied." 

The  correct  use  of  without  and  except  is  shown  in  these 
sentences : 

1.  Miss  Morton  cannot  secure  the  position  without  a  recommen- 

dation. 

2.  Your  car  is  the  most  expensive  on  the  market  except  one. 

3.  Without  the  use  of  the  Addressograph,  the  work  of  the  office 

would  be  done  more  slowly. 

In  the  following  sentences  unless  is  used  correctly: 

1.  Unless  you  return  the  chair  promptly,  we  cannot  refund  your 

money. 

2.  We  shall  be  compelled  to  cancel  our  order  of  May  4,  unless 

the  goods  arrive  tomorrow. 

3.  Unless  present  indications  prove  unreliable,  there  will  be  a 

shortage  of  silk  goods  for  the  fall  trade. 

Study  the  following  incorrect  and  correct  expressions: 

The  expressions  in  this  col-  The  expressions  in  this  col- 
umn are  either  incorrect  or  umn  are  correct  and  in  good 
in  had  taste:  taste: 
.  I  do  not  deny  hut  what  gov-  i.  I  do  not  deny  that  govern- 
ernment  bonds  are  safe  ment  bonds  are  safe 
enough.  enough. 


96 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


The  expressions  in  this  col- 
umn are  either  incorrect  or 
in  had  taste: 

2.  I  do  not  doubt  hut  that  this 

article  was  manufactured 
by  your  Company. 

3.  You  may  return  the  goods 

providing  they  are  defec- 
tive. 

4.  During  August  we  shall  try 

and  increase  our  sales. 

5.  See  if  the  order  has  been 

correctly  filled. 

6.  I  do  not  see  as  the  goods  are 

really  damaged. 

7.  Henry  said  how  he  would 

deliver  every  package 
before  night. 

8.  Do  you  know  if  the  bill  has 

been  paid? 
g.  As  long  as  you  have  always 
met      your     obligations 
promptly,  we  will  extend 
your  credit  sixty  days. 

10.  I    do    not    know    as    the 

quality  of  these  goods  is 
superior  to  our  own. 

11.  Under  these  circumstances, 

therefore,  we  cannot  hut 
refuse  to  replace  the 
table. 


The  expressions  in  this  col- 
umn are  correct  and  in  good 
taste: 

2.  I  do  not  doubt  that  this  ar- 

ticle was  manufactured 
by  your  company. 

3.  You  may  return  the  goods 

provided  they  are  defec- 
tive. 

4.  During  August  we  shall  try 

to  increase  our  sales. 

5.  See  whether  the  order  has 

been  correctly  filled. 

6.  I  do  not  see  that  the  goods 

are  really  damaged. 

7.  Henry  said  that  he  would 

deliver  every  package 
before  night. 

8.  Do  you  know  whether  the 

bill  has  been  paid? 

9.  Since    you    have    always 

met  your  obHgations 
promptly,  we  will  extend 
your   credit  sixty  days. 

10.  I   do   not   know   that   the 

quality  of  these  goods  is 
superior  to  our  own. 

11.  Under  these  circumstances, 

therefore,  we  can  but 
refuse  to  replace  the 
table. 


LESSON  TWENTY-THREE 

Sentence  Structure:  The  Simple  Sentence 

There  are  many  kinds  of  subjects.  Note  the  seven  kinds 
of  subjects  in  the  following:  • 

1.  The  price  has  advanced.    (A  noun) 

2.  They  wear  well.    (A  pronoun) 

3.  The  ambitious  succeed.    (An  adjective) 

4.  To  write  was  his  delight.    (An  infinitive) 

5.  To  answer  letters  was  his  duty.    (An  infinitive  phrase) 

6.  Answering  letters  was  his  duty.    (A  gerund) 

7.  That  the  price  of  sugar  has  risen  cannot  be  denied.    (A  clause) 

The  simple  subject  may  be  much  enlarged  by  the  addi- 
tion of  modifiers.  For  example,  we  may  expand  the  first 
of  the  foregoing  sentences  —  thus:  "  The  price  of  all  the 
shoes  that  the  company  manufactures  has  advanced. ^^  The 
simple  subject  (price),  together  with  all  its  modifiers,  is 
called  the  complete  subject. 

Similarly,  the  complete  predicate  is  the  simple  predicate, 
or  predicate  verb,  with  all  its  modifiers.  Note  the  com- 
plete predicate  in  each  of  the  following  sentences: 

1.  A  night  letter  will  he  delivered  on  the  morning  of  the  next  busi- 

ness day. 

2.  Business  men  sometimes  use  code  language  in  night  letters. 

3.  The  Standard  Dictionary  is  used  by  many  business  houses. 

The  subject  usually  stands  first  in  the  sentence,  but  may 
come  after  the  verb  —  as,  "  Immediately  came  an  insistent 
demand  for  higher  wages. ^^  This  kind  of  sentence  can  at 
times  be  used  effectively  to  secure  variety. 

Many  statements  in  speaking  and  writing  begin  with 

97 


98  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

There  is  or  There  are.  You  often  use  the  one  when  the 
other  is  needed.  In  such  cases,  there  causes  the  trouble.  The 
word  there  is  not  the  subject  of  the  sentence  at  all;  it 
merely  introduces  it  and  makes  it  possible  for  the  subject 
to  stand  after  the  verb. 

In  the  following  sentences  the  subject  follows  the  verb. 
Observe  that  when  the  subject  is  singular  we  should  use 
is,  was,  or  has  and  when  plural,  are,  were,  or  have. 

1.  There  is  a  telegram  from  the  National  Cash  Register   Com- 

pany on  your  desk. 

2.  There  are  many  kinds  of  office  directories  and  reference  books. 

3.  There  was  no  explanation  of  the  delay  in  your  letter  of 

August  4. 

4.  There  were  several  form  letters  lying  on  the  manager's  desk. 

5.  There  have  been  placed  on  the  market  machines  for  sealing 

and  stamping  mail  at  the  same  time. 

If  we  rearrange  these  sentences  so  that  the  subject 
stands  first,  the  difficulty  disappears  —  thus : 

1.  A  telegram  from  the  National  Cash  Register  Company  is  on 

your  desk. 

2.  Many  kinds  of  office  directories  and  reference  books  are  in 

existence. 

3.  No  explanation  of  the  delay  was  in  your  letter  of  August  4. 

4.  Several  form  letters  were  lying  on  the  manager's  desk. 

5.  Machines  for  sealing  and  stamping  mail  at  the  same  time 

have  been  placed  on  the  market. 

Through  carelessness  many  fall  into  the  habit  of  saying 
they  is  or  they  are,  they  has  or  they  have,  they  was  or  they 
were,  instead  of  there  is  or  there  are,  there  was  or  there 
were,  there  has  or  there  have.  This  is  a  very  crude  error, 
but  one  that  can  be  easily  corrected  if   you  pronounce 


SENTENCE  STRUCTURE  99 

distinctly  the  word  there  each  time.  Do  not  say,  for  ex- 
ample, ^^They  have  been  fewer  orders  this  month  than  last." 
In  the  following  sentences  expressions  beginning  with 
there  are  used  correctly.  Read  them  carefully  several  times, 
and  try  to  form  the  habit  of  using  these  words  rightly: 

1.  There  is  no  reply  to  your  telegram. 

2.  In  the  mail  yesterday  there  was  an  order  for  hammers. 

3.  There  are  many  interesting  tr Side  journals. 

4.  In  Mr.  Clower's  office  there  were  several  machines  for  taking 

care  of  the  correspondence. 

5.  Recently  there  has  been  an  unusual  demand  for  Goodrich 

tires. 

6.  During  the  past  year  there  have  been  many  changes  in  the 

money  market. 

7.  There  is  no  doubt  that  municipal  bonds  are  desirable. 

8.  There  are  few  organizations,  if  any,  doing  so  much  for  the 

city  as  the  Chamber  of  Commerce. 

9.  Among  the  working  people  there  has  developed  a  spirit  of 

cooperation. 

10.  In  the  industrial  world  there  have  risen  a  number  of  situa- 

tions entirely  new. 

11.  There  is  much  news  concerning  the  business  world  in  Sys- 

tem. 

12.  During  the  past  year  there  have  come  many  changes  in  rates 

of  interest. 

13.  There  are  only  a  few  basic  rules  in  good  salesmanship. 

14.  There  have  been  some  instances  in  which  the  law  of  supply 

and  demand  has  been  set  aside. 

Sometimes  the  word  it  is  used  to  introduce  a  sentence, 
the  real  subject  standing  after  the  verb  —  thus : 

1.  It  is  the  policy  of  this  house  to  give  the  best  service  possible  to 

its  customers. 

2.  It  has  been  decided  to  replace  all  furniture  broken  in  transit. 


lOO  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

3.  It  is  important  to  find  out  certain  facts  regarding  your  custo- 

mer's tastes  and  character. 

4.  It  has  been  scientifically  demonstrated  that  a  deficiency  of 

speech  can  he  cured  through  practice. 

The  subject  or  predicate  of  a  sentence  may  be  compound. 
In  the  following  sentences  the  subject  is  compound: 

1.  The  price  and  quality  of  the  goods  should  be  clearly  stated. 

2.  Either  Frank  or  Rufus  is  ready  to  make  copies  of  the  letter. 

In  these  the  predicate  is  compound: 

1.  You  may  take  the  suit  hack  and  refund  the  money. 

2.  We  will  supply  all  the  lahor  and  furnish  all  the  material  ac- 

cording to  specifications  for  $1000. 

The  sentence  should  be  carefully  distinguished  from  ex- 
pressions that  merely  assume.  To  assume  means  to  take 
for  granted  —  as,  the  working  people,  the  man  writing  at  the 
desk,  the  letter  being  short  and  poorly  written.  Some  of  these 
expressions  are  long  and  somewhat  involved  and  bear  a 
close  resemblance  to  a  sentence.  Remember  that  a  sen- 
tence must  have  both  a  subject  and  predicate  and  express 
a  complete  thought.  Note  that  these  expressions  are  not 
sentences : 

1.  Then  after  we  had  packed  the  goods. ' 

2.  In  the  factory  located  near  the  river. 

3.  The  bookkeepers  working  patiently  on  their  books. 


LESSON  TWENTY-FQUR,    : 
Sentence  Structure:  The  Complex  Sentence 

In  the  sentence,  "  The  bank  book  is  sometimes  the  only 
receipt  which  the  depositor  has  for  his  money,"  there  are  two 
clauses.  The  first  of  these  is,  *'  The  bank  book  is  the  only 
receipt,"  and  the  second  "  which  the  depositor  has  for  his 
money."  It  is  clear  that  the  second  clause  depends  upon 
the  first  for  its  meaning.  It  is  therefore  called  a  depen- 
dent or  subordinate  clause.  The  first  clause  does  not  de- 
pend upon  any  other  word  in  the  sentence  for  its  meaning 
and  hence  is  called  the  principal  clause.  The  subordinate 
clause  in  this  sentence  tells  us  something  about  the  noun 
receipt,  that  is,  modifies  it.  It  is,  therefore,  used  like  an 
adjective.  Subordinate  clauses  are  named  according  to 
their  use  in  the  sentence.  We  have  three  kinds  —  ad- 
jectival, adverbial,  and  noun  clauses. 

An  adjectival  clause  is  a  clause  that  is  used  as  an  adjective. 
Such  clauses  are  generally  introduced  by  the  relative  pro- 
nouns who,  which,  and  that  or  some  of  their  inflected  forms. 
Occasionally  adjectival  clauses  begin  with  the  word  where, 
when,  or  why.  When  introduced  by  relative  pronouns, 
they  are  commonly  called  relative  clauses.  The  following 
sentences  contain  adjectival  clauses: 

1.  The  clerk  who  knows  how  to  handle  the  mail  of  the  average  busi- 

ness house  should  easily  find  employment. 

2.  Letters  that  have  not  been  edited  by  the  stenographer  should  not 

be  submitted  for  signature. 

3.  The  man  by  whom  the  note  was  signed  could  not  be  found. 

4.  The  file  clerk  whose  duty  it  was  to  care  for  the  letter  had  mislaid 

it. 

lOI 


io2  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

^  ">  ^^  1\-  : '        '■     '.   i  ■ 

■  '      s'.  The  time 'wk^ntke  note  is  due  should  always  be  kept  in  mind. 
6.  I  know  the  reason  why  a  discount  is  allowed  to  customers. 

An  adverbial  clause  is  a  clause  that  is  used  as  an  adverb 

—  as,  "When  a  person  writes  his  name  across  the  hack  of  a 
note,  he  indorses  it."  Here  the  clause  ''When  a  person 
writes  his  name  across  the  back  of  a  note"  modifies  in- 
dorses. Adverbial  clauses  are  introduced  by  such  conjunc- 
tions as  when,  where,  while,  if,  as,  as  if,  than,  because,  since, 
before,  though,  although,  and  unless.  The  following  sen- 
tences contain  adverbial  clauses: 

1.  If  the  office  mail  is  stamped  by  hand,  the  stamps  are  usually 

bought  in  sheets  of  one  hundred. 

2.  As  business  men  must  occasionally  refer  to  previous  correspond- 

ence, all  letters  should  be  carefully  filed. 

3.  Although  a  nominal  partner  in  a  business  invests  no  capital,  he 

is  responsible  for  the  obligations  of  the  firm. 

4.  Insurance  is  not  wholly  a  development  of  modern  times, /or 

it  was  known  to  the  ancients. 

5.  Nothing  else  in  life  can  be  so  important  to  a  man  as  the  work 

in  which  he  engages  (is). 

6.  Let  the  competitor's  goods  be  secondary  if  they  are  men- 

tioned at  all. 

A  noun  clause  is  a  clause  that  is  used  as  a  noun  —  as, 
"  That  salesmanship  can  be  taught  successfully  cannot  be 
denied."  We  have  here  as  the  subject  a  group  of  words 
playing  the  part  usually  played  by  a  noun  or  pronoun. 
The  clause  is,  therefore,  a  noun  clause. 

Noun  clauses  are  generally  introduced  by  the  word  that 

—  as,  "I  did  not  know  that  government  bonds  were  free  from 
taxation  J  ^    However,  that  is  frequently  omitted.     In  fact 


SENTENCE  STRUCTURE  103 

it  can  be  left  out  of  the  foregoing  sentence  without  affect- 
ing the  thought  in  any  way. 

Noun  clauses  may  also  be  introduced  by  the  relative  pro- 
nouns who,  which,  what,  and  that,  and  by  the  conjunctions 
when,  where,  why,  whether,  and  how. 

The  following  sentences  contain  noun  clauses  as  ordi- 
narily used : 

1.  That  prices  rise  during  war  times  is  evident. 

2.  Your  objection  to  the  suit  is  that  it  is  not  made  of  wool. 

3.  I  know  that  a  man  can  study  his  goods  and  increase  his  knowl- 

edge of  them. 

4.  We  wish  to  say  that  we  are  most  certainly  interested  in  con- 

sidering all  new  mechanical  devices. 

5.  Please  tell  us  when  the  goods  should  be  shipped. 

6.  We  are  unable  to  tell  whether  we  shall  he  interested  in  your 

gasoline  feed  system. 

7.  We  did  not  know  who  manufactured  the  shoes. 

8.  The  salesman  asked  which  we  preferred. 

g.  The  manager's  reply  was,  "  That  is  the  best  we  can  do." 

10.  How  prices  were  controlled  has  not  been  learned. 

11.  I  inquired  when  he  would  ship  the  goods. 

12.  The  public  soon  learns  where  the  best  service  is  given, 

13.  It  is  not  difficult  to  explain  why  he  failed  in  business. 

14.  No  one  could  tell  hffiv  long  the  supply  of  cotton  would  last. 


LESSON  TWENTY-FIVE 

Sentence  Structure:   The  Compound  Sentence 

A  sentence  is  said  to  be  compound  if  it  consists  of  two  or 
more  independent  statements  closely  related  in  thought  — 
as,  "  The  money  lent  is  called  the  principal,  and  the  sum 
paid  for  the  use  of  it  is  called  the  interest."  Here  we  have 
two  statements,  or  members,  united,  each  of  which  might 
stand  alone.  They  are  clearly  related  in  thought  and 
belong  together. 

There  Sirefive  connectives  commonly  used  to  connect  in- 
dependent statements.^    They  are: 

and  nor 

but  neither 

or 

Sometimes,  however,  the  connective  is  omitted,  espe- 
cially when  the  relation  in  thought  between  the  members 
is  close  —  as,  ''We  cannot  wait  longer  for  a  remittance; 
our  own  bills  must  be  paid." 

It  is  important  to  be  able  to  distinguish  a  simple  sentence 
with  a  compound  subject  or  predicate  from  a  compound 
sentence.  For  example,  the  following  statement  looks  very 
much  like  a  compound  sentence:  "He  looked  hurriedly 
through  the  letter  and  presently  laid  it  on  the  table." 
If  you  examine  it  carefully,  you  will  find  that  there  is  but 
one  subject  and  a  compound  predicate.     It  is  therefore 

*  Commonly  called  coordinate  conjunctions  because  they  connect  equal 
members, 

104 


SENTENCE  STRUCTURE  105 

a  simple  sentence.  Reduced  to  its  simplest  form  it  appears 
thus:  "  He  looked  and  laid."  And  merely  connects  two 
verbs. 

In  deciding  whether  a  sentence  is  simple  or  compound, 
the  question  is,  what  does  the  conjunction  connect?  Are 
there  really  two  or  more  independent  statements?  If  so, 
the  sentence  is  compound. 

Sometimes  a  simple  sentence  has  both  subject  and  predi- 
cate compound.  Then,  indeed,  it  does  look  like  a  compound 
sentence.  For  example,  the  following  statement  resembles 
a  compound  sentence  very  closely:  "  The  manager  and  his 
secretary  talked  together  for  several  minutes  and  finally 
arrived  at  a  decision."  Reduced  to  its  simplest  form,  this 
statement  reads:  "  Manager  and  secretary  talked  and  ar- 
rived." There  is  evidently  but  a  single  statement  here. 
The  sentence  is  therefore  a  simple  sentence. 

Any  of  the  members  of  a  compound  sentence  may  con- 
tain a  subordinate  clause  —  as,  *'  We  are  much  interested 
in  your  gasoline-feed  system,  but  it  would  not  be  worth  con- 
sidering unless  the  idea  were  properly  protected  by  patents.^' 
In  the  foregoing  illustration  the  second  member  contains  a 
subordinate  clause;  namely,  "  Unless  the  idea  were  prop- 
erly protected  by  patents."  If  the  second  member  were 
detached  from  the  first,  then  it  would  be  merely  a  complex 
sentence.  As  it  stands  it  is  a  compound  sentence,  the 
second  member  of  which  is  complex.  If  you  examine  a 
few  printed  pages,  you  will  probably  find  many  compound 
sentences  with  complex  members. ^ 

1  Manly  and  Bailey:  Lessons  in  English,  Book  II,  page  172. 


lo6  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Compound  sentences  may  be  formed  by  uniting 

1.  Statements  that  are  similar  in  meaning  or  a  continuation  of 

the  same  line  of  thought  —  as,  "The  salesman's  voice 
should  be  clear,  and  his  language  ought  to  be  free  from 
errors."  Do  not  unite  independent  members  that  are  evi- 
dently incongruous  in  meaning.  For  example,  it  is  incor- 
rect to  say,  "Mr.  Price  has  invested  large  sums  of  money  in 
oil  stock,  and  his  wife  is  a  loyal  Presbyterian."  When  in- 
congruous ideas  —  those  that  have  no  relation  to  each 
other  and  do  not  belong  together  —  present  themselves, 
subordinate  one  of  them  or  separate  them  into  two  sen- 
tences. 

2.  Statements  expressing  thoughts  that  are  in  contrast  —  as, 

"The  price  of  these  leather  belts  has  been  greatly  reduced, 
although  the  quality  of  material  in  them  is  superior." 

3.  Statements  expressing   thoughts   between  which  one  must 

choose  —  as,  "Some  remittance,  however  small,  must  be 
received  before  the  last  day  of  the  month,  or  your  account 
will  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  our  attorney  for  collection." 

4.  Statements  expressing  inference  or   consequence.     A   great 

variety  of  connectives  may  be  used  in  such  sentences, 
among  which  are  the  following:  so,  so  that,  hence,  therefore, 
consequently,  accordingly,  wherefore,  and  whereas}  These 
sentences  illustrate  this  kind  of  compound  sentence: 

1.  Everyone  could  understand  and  appreciate  our  plan  of 

selUng  stock  on  monthly  payments;  so  it  became 
popular  in  a  very  short  time. 

2.  Into  every  Goodrich  tire  goes  the  very  best  material; 

therefore,  the  product  outlives  the  guarantee  of  the 
manufacturer. 

*  Campbell  and  Vass:  Essentials  of  English,  page  52. 


LESSON  TWENTY-SIX 

Punctuation 
the  period 

Rule  I.  A  period  should  he  placed  at  the  end  of  euery 
sentence  that  states  a  fact  or  expresses  a  command. 

Simple  as  the  rule  is,  it  is  often  disregarded.  This  is 
sometimes  due  to  carelessness,  but  generally  to  an  inabil- 
ity to  see  at  once  just  where  the  thought  is  completed  and 
the  sentence  ends.  Notice  the  errors  in  the  following  ex- 
amples chosen  from  business  letters: 

1.  We  have  received  your  check  of  $150.    Also  your  letter  in 

regard  to  the  ten-dollar  balance  which  still  remains  open 
on  our  books. 

2.  We  do  not  feel  that  you  have  given  the  matter  due  consider- 

ation. The  open  items  on  your  account,  as  you  will  note 
from  the  enclosed  statement,  having  run  considerably  past 
the  date  of  maturity. 

3.  We  intend  no  discourtesy  by  the  return  of  your  affidavit 

dated  January  24,  certifying  a  shortage  of  merchandise. 
This  in  its  present  form  not  being  effective  in  collecting  a 
claim. 

4.  The  two  invoices  total  $171.86;  we  allowed  $25  in  addition 

to  your  check. 

In  the  first  three  of  these  examples,  incomplete  thoughts 
are  treated  as  if  they  were  sentences.  Such  errors  generally 
arise  in  mistaking  a  long  phrase  or  clause  for  a  statement. 
Participial  phrases,  particularly  those  containing  being  or 
having,  are  especially  troublesome. 

If  you  take  the  foregoing  errors  separately,  you  will  see 
at  once  that  they  are  not  sentences: 

107 


io8  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

1.  Also  your  letter  in  regard  to  the  ten-dollar  balance  which  still 

remains  open  on  our  books. 

2.  The  open  items  on  your  account,  as  you  will  note  from  the 

enclosed  statement,  having  run  considerably  past  the  date 
of  maturity. 

3.  This  in  its  present  form  not  being  effective  in  collecting  a 

claim. 

The  fourth  example  illustrates  the  common  fault  of  run- 
ning together  several  sentences.  This  particular  expres- 
sion should  be  pointed  as  follows :  "  The  two  invoices  total 
$171.86.     We  allowed  $25  in  addition  to  your  check." 

Rule  II.     A  period  should  be  used  after  an  abbreviation. 

Note  the  following  illustrations:  C.O.D.,  f.o.b.,  inst., 
doz.,  pkg.,  p.,  etc.  The  rule  appHes  also  to  initials  — 
as,  A.  M.  Hyde.  A  period  should  not,  however,  be  placed 
after  a  contraction  or  ist,  2d,  3d,  4th,  etc. 

A  few  abbreviations,  such  as  per  cent  and  ad,  no  longer 
require  the  period. 

In  references  to  public  land  divisions,  the  following  punc- 
tuation is  approved:  the  NW  34  SE  34  sec.  35,  T.  16  N., 
R.  2  W.i 

THE    QUESTION  MARK 

Rule  III.  A  question  mark  should  be  used  at  the  close 
of  eoery  direct  question. 

1.  "How  much  can  you  pay?"  Mr.  Day  inquired. 

2.  Mr.  Day  inquired  how  much  I  could  pay. 

Note  that  in  the  second  illustration  the  question  is  not 

1  This  describes  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section 
35  of  township  i6  north  in  range  2  west. 


PUNCTUATION  109 

stated  directly  and  is  therefore  not  followed  by  a  question 
mark. 

THE   EXCLAMATION   POINT 

Rule  IV.  An  exclamation  point  should  he  used  after 
interjections,^  exclamatory  words,  and  phrases  and  clauses 
that  express  strong  feeling. 

THE   COMMA 

Rule  V.  The  comma  should  he  used  to  mark  the  omis- 
sion of  words  or  word  groups. 

In  a  series  of  words,  phrases,  or  clauses  —  that  is,  where 
there  are  more  than  two  —  the  comma  should  be  inserted 
after  each  member  of  the  group  except  the  last.  It  is  im- 
portant to  remember,  however,  that  the  terms  so  separated 
must  be  used  alike  in  the  sentence.  That  is,  a  series  of 
nouns  used  as  the  subject  of  a  verb,  a  series  of  verbs  used 
with  the  same  subject,  or  several  modifiers  —  adjectives, 
adverbs,  phrases,  or  clauses  —  belonging  to  the  same  word, 
require  the  comma.     Note  the  following  illustrations: 

1.  Stamps,  currency,  checks,  and  money  orders  were  found  in 

the  different  letters.    (A  series  of  nouns) 

2.  A  new  table  has  been  selected  from  our  stock,  carefully  crated, 

and  shipped  to  you  by  fast  freight.    (A  series  of  verbs) 

3.  Our  representative  has  had  much  experience  in  our  advertis- 

ing department,  in  the  office,  on  the  road,  and  even  in 
foreign  cities.    (A  series  of  phrases) 

4.  We  claim  that  you  can  easily  equip  your  store  with  our  new 

model  National  Cash  Register,  that  you  can  thereby  ren- 
der better  service  to  your  customers,  and  that  you  can 
save  more  money. 

^  Interjections  are  words  that  express  strong  feeling  —  as,  oh,  alas,  ah,  etc. 


no  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Many  good  writers,  however,  omit  the  comma  between 
the  last  two  members  of  a  series  when  they  are  connected 
by  andy  or,  or  but.  The  first  of  the  foregoing  sentences  is 
quite  as  often  written  thus:  "  Stamps,  currency,  checks 
and  money  orders  were  found  in  the  different  letters." 

In  such  expressions  as  "  attractive  plain  net  curtains," 
no  comma  should  be  used  because  each  word  modifies  all 
that  follows.  In  the  following  sentence,  however,  the  case 
is  different:  "  A  mimeograph  will  produce  sharp,  clean-cut, 
and  accurate  copies  of  typewritten  papers." 

The  rule  applies  also  to  cases  in  which  a  verb  is  omitted 
to  avoid  tiresome  repetition. 

1.  Call  loans  are  payable  on  demand;  time  loans,  at  the  end  of 

a  given  period  of  time. 

2.  The  first  case  of  merchandise  was  shipped  October  4;  the 

second,  one  month  later. 

It  must  not  be  presumed  that  all  omissions  require  a 
conMna.  There  are  many  "  short-cuts  "  which  are  so  well 
known  as  not  to  need  any  mark.  In  cases  where  the 
comma  would  neither  aid  the  eye  nor  make  the  meaning 
clearer  —  where,  in  other  words,  there  would  be  nothing 
gained  —  do  not  use  it.  For  example,  no  comma  need  be 
used  to  show  the  omission  of  that  in  the  sentence  "  The 
manufacturer  knew  he  would  make  a  profit  on  his  goods." 


LESSON  TWENTY-SEVEN 

Punctuation  {Continued) 
THE  COMMA  {Continued) 

Rule  VI.  A  comma  should  he  used  to  separate  the  mem- 
bers of  a  compound  sentence  when  they  are  closely  related 
in  thought  even  though  they  are  connected  by  and,  but, 
or,  nor,  or  neither. 

1.  The  material  of  the  car  should  be  light  but  strong,  and  the 

springs  should  have  ample  play. 

2.  In  some  states  the  landlord  must  keep  the  premises  in  repair, 

but  in  others  the  law  makes  no  such  provision. 

3.  The  goods  may  have  been  lost,  or  some  other  accident  may 

have  occurred. 

4.  A  salesman  should  not  neglect  his  personal  appearance,  nor 

should  he  become  careless  in  speech. 

5.  Our  dealers  have  not  solicited  orders  during  the  month, 

neither  have  they  advertised  our  cars  in  the  daily  papers. 

The  related  assertions  may  be  made  to  stand  alone.  It 
is  a  question  of  the  amount  of  expression-force  you  wish  to 
obtain.  If  you  wish  to  emphasize  each  thought,  let  each 
statement  stand  alone  and  put  a  period  after  it.  There  is 
therefore  considerable  freedom  of  choice.  Note  that  the 
foregoing  examples  may  be  written  thus: 

1.  The  material  of  the  car  should  be  light  but  strong.     The 

springs  should  have  ample  play. 

2.  In  some  states  the  landlord  must  keep  the  premises  in  re- 

pair.   In  others  the  law  makes  no  such  provision. 

3.  The  goods  may  have  been  lost.    Some  other  accident  may 

have  happened. 


112  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

4.  A  salesman  should  not  neglect  his  personal  appearance.    He 

should  not  become  careless  in  speech. 

5.  Our  dealers  have  not  solicited  orders  during  the  month. 

They  have  not  advertised  our  cars  in  the  daily  papers. 

A  comma  should  not  be  used  to  separate  the  members 
of  a  compound  predicate  unless  they  are  long  and  some- 
what involved.  It  was  for  this  reason  that  you  were  asked 
to  distinguish  carefully  between  a  simple  sentence  whose 
predicate  is  compound  and  a  compound  sentence.  For 
example,  no  comma  is  needed  before  the  connective  in  the 
following  sentence,  because  only  the  predicate  is  compound. 

A  number  of  our  dealers  have  used  our  sales  letters  and  obtained 
satisfactory  results. 

Should  you  use  a  different  subject  with  the  second  verb, 
making  two  statements,  you  must  use  the  comma  —  thus : 

A  number  of  our  dealers  have  used  our  sales  letters,  and  some 
of  them  have  obtained  very  satisfactory  results. 

Rule  VII.  A  comma  should  be  used  to  set  ojff  a  subordi- 
nate clause  standing  first  in  the  sentence, 

1.  When  we  furnished  you  the  routing  information,  we  closed  our 

file  on  the  tracer. 

2.  If  he  is  unable  to  show  delivery  to  your  satisfaction,  he  can  take 

up  the  matter  with  his  agent  at  Peoria  for  the  passing 
record  at  that  point. 

One  exception  should  perhaps  be  mentioned.  A  clause 
that  is  used  as  a  subject  should  not  be  set  off,  as  it  is 
almost  always  incorrect  to  separate  a  subject  from  its  verb, 
unless,  of  course,  it  is  very  long  and  intricate.  For  ex- 
ample, it  would  be  incorrect  to  insert  a  comma  after  signed 


PUNCTUATION  113 

in  the  following  sentence:   ^'That  the  contract  will  he  signed 
is  certain." 

Rule  VIII.  Introductory  participial  phrases  and  infini- 
tive phrases  used  independently  should  he  set  of  hy  a  comma. 

1.  Having  shipped  the  goods  hy  fast  freight,  we  feel  sure  they  will 

reach  you  by  September  4. 

2.  Having  made  no  complaint  when  the  merchandise  was  received, 

you  cannot  expect  us  to  accept  return  of  the  goods  now. 

3.  On  referring  to  our  records,  we  find  that  your  order  left  our 

shipping  department  April  4. 

4.  To  tell  the  truth,  we  did  not  expect  a  reply  to  our  letter. 

Seldom  is  it  necessary  to  set  off  other  phrases  standing 
j&rst  in  the  sentence.  For  example,  it  is  not  necessary  to 
separate  the  phrases  in  the  following  sentences: 

1.  In  this  way  an  error  could  easily  be  made  in  packing  the 

goods. 

2.  At  your  early  convenience  will  you  make  out  another  requisi- 

tion for  three  pieces  of  beaverboard? 

If,  however,  the  phrase  is  long  and  complex,  it  should 
be  set  off  —  thus : 

1.  For  the  corresponding  six  months  in  1920,  we  lost  $100,000. 

2.  After  a  conversation  with  a  friend  or  business  acquaintance,  re- 

tire to  your  office  or  room  and  think  over  all  that  was  said. 

An  introductory  adverb  or  one  that  is  used  independ- 
ently should  be  set  off  by  a  comma  —  thus : 

1.  Now,  I  want  to  take  your  order  strictly  on  the  merits  of  the 

goods. 

2.  Then,  why  should  we  refund  your  money? 

3.  In  short,  it  is  wrong  for  the  salesman  to  blame  his  failure 

upon  the  buyer. 


114  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Rule  IX.    Modifying  clauses  should  he  set  of  by  commas 
only  when  they  present  an  additional  thought. 
The  following  sentences  are  types  of  this  kind: 

1.  Mr.  Davis,  who  is  our  representative  in  that  part  of  the  state f 

will  call  on  you  in  a  few  days. 

2.  You  have  taken  more  orders  than  any  other  salesman,  which 

is  all  the  house  can  ask. 

3.  Our  buyer  reached  Paris  early  in  June,  where  he  decided  to  re- 

main for  a  week  or  two. 

4.  The  farm  was  practically  sold,  when  suddenly  a  defect  was 

found  in  the  title. 

In  order  to  show  that  the  modifying  clauses  present 
additional  ideas,  the  foregoing  sentences  may  be  written 
as  follows: 

1.  Mr.  Davis  will  call  on  you  in  a  few  days.    He  is  our  repre- 

sentative in  that  part  of  the  state. 

2.  You  have  taken  more  orders  than  any  other  salesman.    This 

is  all  the  house  can  ask. 

3.  Our  buyer  reached  Paris  early  in  June.  He  decided  to  remain 

there  for  a  week  or  two. 

4.  The  farm  was  practically  sold.  Suddenly  a  defect  was  found 

in  the  title. 

You  will  find  it  necessary  to  distinguish  carefully  be- 
tween a  clause  that  presents  an  additional  thought  and 
one  that  limits  or  closely  defines  the  word  it  modifies. ^ 
Observe  that  in  the  following  sentences  no  comma  is  needed 
to  set  off  the  limiting  clauses: 

^  A  clause  that  limits  or  closely  defines  the  word  it  modifies  is  commonly 
called  a  restrictive  clause;  ene  that  presents  an  additional  thought,  a  non- 
restrictive  clause. 


PUNCTUATION  115 

1.  The  mailing  clerk  who  is  familiar  with  the  regulations  covering 

domestic  and  foreign  mail  will  succeed. 

2.  Bring  me  the  telegram  that  lies  on  Mr.  Heuson's  desk. 

3.  Our  store  is  the  one  place  where  quality  is  supreme. 

4.  I  will  notify  you  when  Mr.  Morgan  deposits  the  warranty 

deed. 

In  the  first  sentence  the  clause  who  is  familiar  with  the 
regulations  covering  domestic  and  foreign  mail  limits  the 
word  clerk.  Not  every  mailing  clerk  will  succeed,  but  only 
the  one  who  is  familiar  with  the  regulations  covering  do- 
mestic and  foreign  mail.  The  clause  could  not  be  dropped 
without  leaving  the  meaning  changed  or  incomplete.  The 
same  line  of  reasoning  applies  to  the  remaining  examples. 


LESSON  TWENTY-EIGHT 

Punctuation  {Continued) 
THE  COMMA  {Continued) 

Rule  X.  Words  of  address,  together  with  their  accom- 
panying modifiers,  should  he  set  of  by  commas. 

1.  We  feel  certain,  Mr.  Clay,  that  you  will  be  pleased  with  our 

new  American  Radiators. 

2.  Yes,  sir,  I  am  more  than  pleased  with  them. 

Rule  XI.  A  word  or  phrase  in  apposition  should  be  set 
off  by  commas.^ 

1.  Our  New  Model  lo,  the  best  typewriter  made,  has  been  re- 

ceived by  the  public  with  great  enthusiasm. 

2.  H.  E.  Girard,  treasurer. 

Rule  XII.  Parenthetical  words,  phrases,  or  clauses 
should  be  set  of  by  commas.^ 

1.  If,  however,  this  account  is  correct,  will  you  please  remit  at 

once? 

2.  This  article,  for  example,  cannot  be  bought  for  less  at  whole- 

sale. 

3.  The  goods,  /  am  sure,  were  lost  in  transit. 

4.  The  firm  had  decided,  he  said,  to  refuse  the  return  of  goods 

shipped  according  to  contract. 

The  words  however,  nevertheless,  indeed,  therefore,  namely, 
no  doubt,  of  course,  perhaps,  in  truth,  for  example,  and  such 

*  A  word  or  phrase  attached  to  a  noun  or  pronoun  to  explain  it,  is  said  to 
be  in  apposition. 

2  Parenthetical  words,  phrases,  and  clauses  are  expressions  which  might 
be  omitted  without  destroying  the  main  idea  of  the  sentence.  They  are 
thrown-in  expressions. 

116 


PUNCTUATION  117 

expressions  are  often  used  parenthetically.  Sometimes, 
however  modifies  a  single  word,  and  in  this  case  should  not 
be  set  off  —  as,  ^^ However  anxious  he  may  have  been  to  sell 
his  goods,  he  did  not  misrepresent  a  single  article."  In 
this  case  however  is  not  a  parenthetical  word  but  an  adverb. 

Rule  XIII.  So-called  intermediate  expressions  —  those 
that  come  between  such  closely  related  pafts  as  subject  and 
predicate  or  the  verb  and  its  object  —  should  be  set  of  by 
commas. 

1.  This  plan,  with  your  hearty  cooperation,  should  enable  us  to 

sell  many  new  cars. 

2.  You  may,  if  you  like,  use  my  name  for  reference. 

3.  After  a  reasonable  time,  every  effort  having  been  made  by  letter 

to  induce  payment,  the  account   should  be  placed  in  the 
hands  of  an  attorney  for  collection.^ 

Remember,  however,  that  phrases  which  limit  closely 
should  not  be  set  off  —  as,  "  The  desk  by  the  window  is 
very  expensive."  It  is  a  mistake  to  assume  that  all  par- 
ticipial phrases  should  be  set  off.  For  example,  in  the 
sentence  "  The  goods  kept  on  display  were  sold  at  a  reduc- 
tion," the  purpose  of  the  phrase  is  not  to  present  an  addi- 
tional fact,  but  to  tell  us  just  vv^hat  goods  were  sold  at  a 
reduction.    Therefore,  no  comma  should  be  used. 

*  A  noun  and  a  participle  with  their  modifiers  are  sometimes  used  inde- 
pendently to  make  up  what  is  called  the  absolute  phrase.  Whether  used  at 
the  beginning  of  the  sentence  or  within  it,  the  phrase  should  be  set  oflf. 
The  absolute  phrase  should  not  be  confused  with  the  so-called  suspended 
participle  —  that  is,  one  that  has  no  expressed  noun  or  pronoun  to  modify. 
For  example,  in  the  sentence  ''Going  into  the  office,  a  letter  was  written  to 
the  manufacturer,"  the  participle  is  suspended. 


Ii8  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Rule  XIV.  Occasionally  a  comma  is  needed  to  make  the 
meaning  clearer  or  to  avoid  ambiguity, 

1.  We  have  just  received  a  letter  containing  enclosure,  and  a 

telegram. 

2.  Our  new  foreman  is  tall,  and  heavily  built. 

3.  To  sell  the  same  article  always,  prevents  the  salesman  from 

dividing  his  attention. 

In  the  first  sentence  the  comma  is  necessary  to  show 
that  the  telegram  was  not  enclosed  in  the  letter.  In  the 
second,  if  the  comma  were  omitted,  you  would  read  tall 
and  heavily  together.  In  the  third,  the  comma  prevents 
ambiguity. 

Rule  XV.     Words  or  phrases  contrasted  with  each  other 

should  be  separated  by  commas. 

f 

1.  You  should  file  claim  with  the  railroad  company,  not  with 

us. 

2.  There  are  few  positions,  but  many  applicants. 

Rule  XVI.  A  short  quotation  should  be  set  off  by  a 
comma. 

1.  Mr.  Bush  said,  "We  will  accept  orders  mailed  before  July  7." 

2.  "We  will  accept  orders  mailed  before  July  7,"  said  Mr.  Bush. 


LESSON  TWENTY-NINE 

Punctuation  (Continued) 

THE    SEMICOLON 

Rule  XVII.  Members  of  a  compound  sentence  not  con- 
nected by  and,  but,  or,  nor,  or  neither  should  be  separated 
by  a  semicolon. 

In  some  states  the  landlord  must  keep  the  premises  in  repair; 
in  others  the  law  makes  no  such  provision. 

Sometimes  the  members  of  a  compound  sentence  are 
united  by  a  set  of  connectives  which  are  really  adverbs 
rather  than  con  junctions,  i    The  list  includes  the  following: 


accordingly 

then 

in  fact 

consequently 

therefore 

at  least 

however 

so 

at  last 

indeed 

yet 

of  course 

nevertheless 

hence 

When  a  statement  is  joined  to  another  by  one  of  the 
foregoing,  the  semicolon  should  be  used  —  thus : 

1.  It  looked  as  if  the  sugar  market  would  break  within  a  month; 

accordingly  we  began  marking  down  the  price  and  dispos- 
ing of  our  large  supply. 

2.  We  cannot  believe  that  you  have  personally  overlooked  your 

indebtedness  to  us;  consequently  we  are  writing  merely  to 
remind  you  of  your  past-due  account. 

3.  If  you  can  send  your  note  for  the  amount  by  return  mail,  we 

will  accept  that;  however  we  prefer  a  draft  or  your  personal 
check. 

*  C.  H.  Ward:  Sentence  and  Theme,  page  314. 
119 


I20  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

4.  Orders  came  in  faster  yesterday;  in  fact  we  received  double 
the  usual  number. 

When  a  statement  beginning  with  for  example,  for  in- 
stance, or  for  illustration  follows  another,  the  semicolon 
should  be  used: 

We  have  been  unusually  unfortunate  this  spring;  for  example , 
we  could  not  secure  transportation  for  any  of  our  cotton 
goods. 

If  you  wish  to  secure  greater  emphasis,  however,  you 
should  make  the  statements  thus  united  stand  as  separate 
sentences. 

Rule  XVIII.  The  members  of  a  compound  sentence 
should  he  separated  by  a  semicolon  when  they  contain  commas 
even  though  the  connective  is  expressed. 

We  are  sure  you  do  not  wish  us  to  discriminate  against  any  of 
our  customers ;  however,  if  we  accept  the  return  of  the  goods 
•we  have  shipped,  we  shall  be  doing  so. 

THE   COLON 

Rule  XIX.  The  colon  should  be  used  to  announce  an 
explanation,  enumeration,  or  quotation  to  follow  after  such 
expressions  as  as  follows,  in  the  following  manner,  the 
following,  thus,  this,  these,  one,  two,  etc. 

1.  Please  ship  us  by  fast  freight  the  following: 

20  doz.  pint  cans  Sweet  Corn 

12  pails  No.  2  Mackerel 

15  cases  Royal  Baking  Powder 

2.  Some  of  the  articles  to  be  included  in  our  September  sale  are 


PUNCTUATION  121 

as  follows:    hats,  shirts,   neckwear,   traveling  bags,  and 
shoes. 
3.  There  were  two  reasons  why  he  failed:    He  was  lazy,  and  he 
had  no  credit. 

The  expression  that  follows  the  colon  may  be  one  or 
more  independent  statements  or  questions.  In  this  case 
it  should  be  capitalized: 

1.  I  sent  him  this  telegram:    "Kindly  extend  time  on  contract 

at  least  one  week." 

2.  These  things  should  be  kept  in  mind:    Prices  are  subject  to 

change  without   notice.      All   prices   are  f.o.b.  point  of 
storage. 

3.  This  can  be  said  of  the  Mississippi  Valley  Trust  Company: 

It  has  never  lost  a  dollar  of  capital  for  any  estate  for  which 
it  has  made  an  investment. 

A  mere  list  of  particulars,  however,  should  not  begin 
with  a  capital  —  thus : 

The  merchant  sold  the  following  goods:  shoes,  hats,  neckwear, 
and  handkerchiefs. 

Rule  XX.  The  colon  should  generally  be  used  after  the 
salutation  of  a  letter, 

1.  Dear  Sir:  ;  ,,^ 

2.  Gentlemen: 

THE   DASH 

Rule  XXI.  The  dash  should  he  used  to  mark  an  abrupt 
change  in  thought  or  in  sentence  structure. 

1.  The  price  of  sugar  suddenly  rose  —  whether  on  account  of  a 

shortage  of  the  supply  or  not,  no  one  seemed  to  know. 

2.  You  will  see  that  trucks  do  more  than  increase  territory  — 

they  multiply  it. 

3.  Then  the  company  —  but  that  is  another  story. 


122  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Rule  XXII.  An  explanatory  expression  at  the  end  of  a 
sentence  should  ordinarily  be  set  off  by  a  dash. 

1.  You  develop  confidence  in  yourself  —  the  greatest  single  as- 

set a  salesman  can  have. 

2.  Life  insurance  policies  fall  into  three  groups  —  whole-life, 

term,  and  endowment. 

Sometimes  such  expressions  are  introduced  by  such  as, 
aSy  that  is,  for  example,  or  for  instance. 

Car  manufacturers  want  something  automatic — that  is,  something 
that  will  keep  the  gasoline  above  the  carburetor  continually. 

Namely,  however,  is  usually  preceded  by  a  semicolon 
and  followed  by  a  comma. 

Property  is  of  two  kinds;  namely,  real  and  personal. 

Sometimes  explanatory  matter  is  set  in  the  midst  of  the 
sentence.  In  this  case  a  dash  is  needed  both  before  and 
after  the  expression  —  thus : 

1.  A  number  of  articles  of  furniture  —  library  tables,  buffets, 

dining-room  chairs,  and  iron  beds  —  are  offered  at  a  dis- 
count. 

2.  These  two  kinds  —  that  is,  the  warranty  deed  and  the  quit- 

claim deed  —  are  now  about  the  only  kinds  made. 

Rule  XXIII.  A  dash  may  be  used  to  set  of  parenthetical 
expressions  wherever  commas  would  not  give  sufficient  em- 
phasis or  would  be  confusing. 

These  written  promises  to  pay  —  for  indeed  they  are  promises 
—  are  called  promissory  notes. 

Rule  XXIV.     A  dash  should  follow  a  list  of  particulars 

when  there  is  a  summarizing  phrase  or  clause.^ 

1  A  summarizing  phrase  or  clause  is  one  that  presents  a  summary  of  what 
has  preceded. 


PUNCTUATION  123 

To  act  as  trustee  of  property,  to  manage  real  property,  to  act 
as  receiver  for  defunct  concerns,  and  to  act  as  depository  for 
trust  funds,  securities,  and  other  personal  property  —  these 
are  the  powers  granted  to  trust  companies. 

No  other  mark  of  punctuation  is  so  expressive  as  the 
dash.  Writers  of  sales  letters  and  advertisements  use  it 
again  and  again  to  point  out  a  part  of  the  sentence  on 
which  they  wish  to  lay  special  stress.  There  is  a  great 
danger  in  the  too  frequent  use  of  the  dash  by  lazy  writers, 
who  use  it  because  it  is  easy  to  apply.  You  can  avoid  this 
error  by  using  the  dash  only  when  there  is  a  real  need 
for  it,  as  shown  in  Rules  XXI  to  XXIV. 

Note  the  advantage  in  emphasis  through  the  use  of  the 
dash  in  the  following  sentences  gathered  from  sales  letters 
and  advertisements : 

1.  We  sell  them  —  Cords  and  Fabrics. 

2.  Remember,  —  and  this  will  save  you  road  trouble,  —  there 

is  only  one  best  cord  tire. 

3.  The  best  is  put  in  —  to  bring  the  best  out. 

4.  Our  bungalows  are  just  what  you  will  want  —  new  —  mod- 

ern —  convenient  —  beautiful  —  and  at  a  price  you  can't 
resist. 

THE   QUOTATION  MARKS 

Rule  XXV.  A  direct  quotation  should  he  enclosed  in 
quotation  marks.^ 

Mr.  Baker  said,  "We  should  have  ordered  the  goods  to  be  re- 
turned immediately  to  you." 

Note  that  a  direct  quotation  begins  with  a  capital  letter 

and  is  set  off  by  a  comma.    However,  if  it  is  long  or  very 

*  A  direct  quotation  is  one  that  repeats  the  exact  words  of  a  speaker  or 
writer. 


124  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

formal,  it  should  be  preceded  by  a  colon.  No  comma  is 
needed  in  such  expressions  as  this:  Yesterday  I  received  a 
"  please  remit." 

Remember  that  neither  the  comma  nor  quotation  marks 
are  needed  unless  the  exact  words  of  the  speaker  are  quoted 
—  thus : 

Mr.  Baker  said  that  they  should  have  ordered  the  goods  imme- 
diately returned  to  us. 

Quotations  are  often  broken  by  such  expressions  as  said 
he,  replied  she,  etc.  In  such  cases,  enclose  both  halves  in 
quotation  marks  and  set  off  the  expressions  said  he,  etc., 
by  commas  —  thus : 

"We  should,"  said  Mr.  Baker,  "have  ordered  the  goods  to  be 
returned  immediately  to  you." 

Rule  XXVI.     //  several  paragraphs  are  quotedy  place 

marks  before  each  separate  paragraph,  hut  after  only  the  last. 

When  the  quotation  covers  several  consecutive  sentences 

in  the  same  paragraph  the  marks  should  be  placed  before 

the  first  only  and  at  the  close. 

Rule  XXVII.  A  quotation  within  a  quotation  requires 
single  marks. 

Mr.  Haines  then  continued,  'In  my  letter  of  November  4  I 
said,  'We  cannot  accept  the  return  of  the  merchandise  be- 
cause it  was  shipped  according  to  contract;'  you  have  failed 
to  reply  to  this  statement." 

Rule  XXVIII.  Titles  of  articles,  poems,  magazines,  and 
hooks  when  quoted  should  he  enclosed  in  quotation  marks  or 
underlined.    If  printed,  they  should  he  italicized. 

I  have  received  a  copy  of  Sorelle's  Office  Training  for  Stenog- 
raphers. 


LESSON  THIRTY 

Special  Cases  in  Punctuation 

THE  parts  of  a  LETTER 

Envelope  Addressing.  Some  houses  omit  punctuation 
at  the  end  of  the  Hnes  in  envelope  addresses,  but  a  majority 
uses  so-called  conservative  punctuation.  This  requires  a 
comma  at  the  end  of  each  line,  except  the  last,  which  is 
followed  by  a  period.  When  two  items  —  for  example,  the 
name  of  the  city  and  the  state  —  occupy  the  same  line, 
they  should  be  separated  by  a  comma,  and  abbreviations 
should  always  be  followed  by  a  period  —  thus: 

Sacramento,  Cal. 

If  city  and  state  are  written  on  separate  lines,  they 
appear  as  follows: 

Sacramento,  or  Sacramento, 

California.  Cal. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  place  #  or  No.  before  numbers, 
and  th  and  d  also  should  be  omitted  after  figures.  Write 
street  name  and  number  as  follows: 

150  West  Sixty-second  Street, 
150  West  62  Street,    or 
150  W.  62  St. 

The  following  illustrations  show  the  correct  punctuation 
of  the  envelope  address: 

Jacoby  Brothers,  Jacoby  Bros., 

331  S.  Broadway,  or  331  S.  Broadway, 

Los  Angeles,  Los  Angeles,  Cal. 


California, 


I2S 


126  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Letter  Headings.  What  has  been  said  of  the  punctua- 
tion of  the  envelope  address,  applies  also  to  the  heading. 
The  following  shows  correct  punctuation: 

5500  Euclid  Avenue,  5500  Euclid  Avenue, 

Cleveland,  Ohio,  or  Cleveland,  Ohio, 

December  16,  1923.  Dec.  16,  1923. 

Business  houses  use  printed  or  engraved  letterheads, 
consisting  generally  of  the  firm  name,  address,  and  char- 
acter of  the  business.  When  the  letterhead  is  used,  place 
the  date  in  the  right-hand  side,  about  three  spaces  below 
the  printed  matter.  The  following  letterhead  shows  the 
correct  form  and  punctuation.  The  name  of  the  month, 
however,  may  be  abbreviated. 

METAL  DEPARTMENT 

S.   G.  ADAMS  STAMP  AND   STATIONERY  CO. 

ADAMS  BUILDING 

April  21,  1923. 

The  Inside  Address.  The  inside  address  consists  of  the 
same  items  as  the  envelope  address,  and  therefore  requires 
the  same  punctuation. 

The  Salutation.  The  salutation  should  be  followed  by 
a  colon  —  thus: 

Dear  Sir: 
Gendemen: 

The  Complimentary  Close.  Only  the  first  word  of  the 
compHmentary  close  should  be  capitalized,  and  a  comma 
should  be  placed  at  the  end  —  thus : 

Yours  truly, 
Yours  respectfully, 

There  are  no  such  abbre\dations  as  Yrs.  and  Respy, 


SPECIAL  CASES  IN  PUNCTUATION  127 

Office  Style.  The  office  style  governs  questions  of  punc- 
tuation and  abbreviation  where  choice  is  permitted.  It 
should  be  uniform.  That  is,  if  words  are  spelled  out  in 
full  on  the  envelope,  they  must  be  in  the  letter,  and  vice 
versa.  If  commas  or  periods  are  used  at  the  end  of  some 
lines,  they  must  appear  at  the  end  of  all  lines. 

COMMERCIAL  FORMS 

Checks.  In  the  upper  right-hand  corner  of  the  check  is 
the  name  of  the  city  and  state,  together  with  date  line. 
A  comma  should  follow  the  name  of  the  city  and  the  state 
and  the  month  and  day.  The  name  of  the  bank  is  gen- 
erally printed  in  large  capitals  in  the  center  above  the  body 
of  the  check.  It  need  not  be  followed  by  a  comma.  In 
the  printed  forms,  the  date,  the  name  of  the  payee,  and  the 
amount  of  the  check  are  all  that  need  to  be  added.  The 
number  of  dollars  should  be  spelled  out,  beginning  with 
a  capital  letter.  The  fraction  of  a  dollar  should  be  written 
close  to  the  number  of  dollars,  and  all  the  remaining  blank 
space  should  be  occupied  by  a  Hne  to  prevent  insertion  of 
words.  The  signature  need  not  be  followed  by  a  period. 
The  following  shows  the  correct  form  and  punctuation: 
Check  No.  35  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  February  4,  1923 

FIRST  NATIONAL  BANK 

Pay  to  the  order  of James  Doe $75.00 

Seventy-five  and  00/100 Dollars 

Arthur  Blake 

Bills.  A  bill  should  show  the  names  of  the  parties  buy- 
ing and  selhng,  the  date  and  place  of  sale,  and  the  kind, 
quantity,  and  price  of  goods  sold.     In  the  upper  right- 


128 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


hand  corner  occur  the  names  of  the  city  and  state,  and  the 
date.  They  are  written  in  the  same  line  usually,  and  the 
items  are  separated  by  commas.  A  period  is  not  neces- 
sary after  the  names  of  the  persons  buying  and  selHng  or 
the  terms  of  sale.  No  punctuation  should  be  used  at  the 
close  of  the  different  items  of  goods.  The  names  of  the 
articles  sold  are  capitalized,  but  not  the  quantities.  The 
following  shows  correct  form  and  punctuation: 


A   BILL 


Des  Moines,  Iowa,  January  4,  1923 


Mr.  Calvin  Brown,  Jr. 

Bought  of  Page  &  Company 
Terms:  30  days  net 


1  bbl.  Gold  Medal  Flour 

2  doz.  cans  Tomatoes 
I  doz.  cans  Corn 


Rec'd  Payment 
Jan.  10,  1921 

Page  &  Company 
Per  E.  A.  White 


>IO.OO 

2.60 
2.00 


$10.00 

5.20 
2.00 


$17.20 


Receipts.  The  names  of  the  city  and  state,  and  the  date 
should  be  written  on  a  single  line  in  the  upper  right-hand 
corner.  The  items  are  separated  by  commas,  but  no  period 
need  be  used  at  the  close.  The  amount  of  money  received 
is  spelled  out  and  should  begin  with  a  capital  letter.  The 
signature  need  not  be  followed  by  a  period.  The  following 
shows  correct  form  and  punctuation: 


SPECIAL  CASES  IN  PUNCTUATION  129 

Chicago,  111.,  March  i,  1923 
Received  of Frank  Ellis 


Fifty-five  and  00/100 Dollars 

for  rent  from  March  i  to  April  i,  1923. 

$55.00  James  Carew 

Notes.  Like  a  check,  a  note  has  the  names  of  the  city 
and  state,  and  the  date  in  the  upper  right-hand  corner.  The 
items  are  separated  by  commas.  There  is  no  end  punc- 
tuation throughout.  The  amount  for  which  the  note  is 
drawn  should  begin  with  a  capital  letter.  The  following 
shows  correct  form  and  punctuation: 

$100.00  San  Francisco,  Cal.,  June  20,  1923 

Three  months  after  date,  I  promise  to  pay  to  the 

order  of  — James  Howard 

One  hundred  and  00/100 Dollars 

Value  received,  with  interest  at  6  % 

Franklin  Bell 

Drafts.  What  has  already  been  said  of  the  punctuation 
of  checks  apphes  also  to  drafts.  In  the  lower  left-hand 
corner  is  placed  the  name  of  the  person  or  the  bank  on 
which  the  draft  is  drawn  and  the  address.  The  items  of 
the  address  are  separated  by  commas.  The  following  dis- 
plays correct  form  and  punctuation: 

$171.00  #  1812 

Lake  Village,  Ark.,  Jtdy  20,  1923 
First  National  Bank 

Pay  to  the  order  of Caleb  Welch $171.00 

One  hundred  seventy-one  and  00/100 Dollars 

To  the  First  National  Bank  Carl  Hart 

Chicago,  111.  Cashier 


I30  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

HOW   TO   EXPRESS    NUMBERS 

In  ordinary  writing  in  which  numbers  do  not  occur  fre- 
quently, spell  all  amounts  from  one  to  one  hundred  inclu- 
sive, and  also  round  numbers. 

1.  There  are  eighty-three  people  in  our  employ. 

2.  The  paper  contained  ^?;e  hundred  signatures. 

Note,  however,  that  in  writing  numbers  of  five  or  more 
digits  in  the  thousands  it  is  preferable  to  use  figures  when- 
ever it  would  be  awkward  to  spell  them.  For  example, 
you  should  express  twenty-one  thousand  in  words,  but 
21,512  in  figures. 1 

The  following  special  rules  will  be  found  helpful: 

1.  Spell  numbers  or  signs  beginning  a  sentence  or  imme- 
diately following  a  colon.  In  such  cases,  if  you  prefer, 
you  may  change  the  arrangement  of  the  sentence. 

1.  Seventy-five  dollars  is  too  much. 

2.  Plus  and  minus  sometimes  occur  together  in  algebra.    (Not 

4-  and  — .) 

3.  Fifty  or  sixty  orders  were  received.    (Not  ^^Fijty  or  60  orders 

were  received.") 

2.  When  two  numbers  occur  together,  express  one  of 
them  in  words  —  thus  : 

1.  Ten  5-room  cottages. 

2.  Seven  8-inch  guns. 

3.  150  Fifth  Avenue. 

3.  Express  in  words  the  time  of  day.  In  time-tables, 
however,  figures  are  used. 

1.  Eight-thirty. 

2.  Ten  o'clock. 

1  W.  R.  Bowlin  and  George  L,  Marsh:  Vocational  English,  page  168. 


SPECIAL  CASES  IN  PUNCTUATION  131 

4.  Express  in  words  sums  of  money  less  than  a  dollar. 
If  associated  with  several  other  sums,  use  figures. 

Fifty  cents  was  the  admission  fee. 

5.  Express  ages  in  words. 

The  secretary  was  fifty  years  of  age. 

In  writing  that  involves  the  frequent  enumeration  of 
weights,  measures,  distances,  sums  of  monty,  dates,  de- 
grees, percentages,  proportions,  stocks  and  bonds,  etc., 
figures  are  much  more  freely  used.  This  applies  especially 
to  adjustment  letters,  collection  letters,  order  letters,  con- 
tracts, and  to  statistics  of  any  kind.  The  following  special 
rules  should  prove  helpful : 

1.  Express  dates  in  figures,  but  spell  the  month. 

June  25,  1921.    (Not  6/25/21) 

2.  Express  in  figures  sums  of  money  amounting  to  $1 
or  more. 

$9-75- 

3.  Express  in  figures  street  numbers  and  house  numbers. 
1014  N.  10  Street. 

4.  Express  per  cents,  degrees,  and  ratios  in  figures. 

1.7  per  cent  interest. 

2.  Longitude  70°  05'  08''  E. 

3.  The  ratio  is  3  to  5. 

5.  Express  in  figures  a  list  of  articles  such  as  may  occur 
in  inquiries  or  statements  about  them. 

Please  send  3  doz.  No.  1237  shirts. 


LESSON  THIRTY-ONE 

Capitalization 

Capital  letters  are  used  to  attract  attention  to  certain 
words.  This  is,  of  course,  a  broad  statement  —  broad 
enough  indeed  to  include  the  capitalization  of  each  word 
in  whole  statements  in  sales  letters  and  advertisements. 
There  are,  however,  a  number  of  well-defined  rules  which 
good  usage  has  developed  and  by  which  you  should  be 
guided  in  your  writing. 

Use  a  capital  letter  to  begin  the  following: 

1.  Every  sentence,  every  direct  quotation,  and  the  first 
word  of  every  line  of  poetry. 

2.  Every  proper  noun  —  as,  Marshall  Field,  Swift  &' 
Company,  Philadelphia,  President,  Senate,  Congress. 

3.  The  names  of  directions  when  they  refer  to  sections 
of  the  country  —  as : 

The  South  has  always  produced  great  quantities  of  cotton. 
But  not  when  they  don't  —  as: 
The  factory  is  north  of  the  station. 

4.  The  names  of  the  days  of  the  week  and  of  the  months 
of  the  year,  but  not  the  names  of  the  seasons  unless  they 
are  personified  —  as,  Monday,  Tuesday,  January,  February, 
spring,  summer,  etc. 

5.  The  names  of  hohdays  and  festivals  —  as,  Christmas, 
Easter,  Labor  Day,  Fourth  of  July,  Thanksgiving,  Shrove 
Tuesday. 

6.  The  names  of  paintings,  statues,  tombs,  monuments, 
and  relics  of  public  interest  —  as,  The  Angelus,  Statue  of 

132 


CAPITALIZATION  133 

Liberty^  Grants   Tomb,  Washington's  Monument,    Liberty 
Bell. 

7.  Names  of  popular  appellations  —  as,  Hoosier  State, 
City  of  Brotherly  Love,  Windy  City,  Wall  Street,  Yankee,  etc. 

8.  Names  of  executive  departments,  bureaus,  commis- 
sions, etc.,  of  the  state  and  national  governments. 

Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor 
Public  Service  Commission 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission 

9.  Names  of  offices  and  divisions  of  the  army  and  the 
word  army  when  it  is  a  proper  name  —  as,  Infantry,  Cav- 
alry, Field  Artillery,  First  Regiment,  American  Army. 

10.  The  names  of  pubHc  buildings  —  as,  Carnegie  Li- 
brary, Municipal  Courts  Building,  Independence  Hall. 

11.  The  names  of  church  denominations,  political  par- 
ties, and  other  organizations  except  college  classes  —  as, 
Presbyterian  Church,  Democratic  Party,  Masonic  Fraternity, 
Knights  of  Columbus,  Chamber  of  Commerce,  but  class  of 
igo6. 

12.  The  names  of  streets,  avenues,  alleys,  courts,  lanes, 
roads,  rivers,  lakes,  and  mountains  —  as,  Michigan  Avenue, 
Market  Street,  Ohio  River,  Rocky  Mountains.  But  write 
Mississippi  and  Ohio  rivers. 

13.  Titles  used  in  connection  with  the  names  of  persons 
—  as.  Governor  Smith,  ex-President  Taft,  King  George, 
General  Pershing. 

14.  The  names  of  offices  and  titles  of  honor,  particu- 
larly those  pertaining  to  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
when  they  refer  to  a  particular  person  or  thing.  (Do  not 
capitalize  presidential.) 


134  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

1.  The  Governor  signed  a  very  important  labor  bill. 

2.  The  Commander  in  Chief  made  a  short  address  to  the  Busi- 

ness Men's  League. 

3.  The  Executive  did  all  in  his  power  to  favor  business  men. 

15.  Father,  mother,  brother,  and  sister,  when  used  with  a 
name  or  instead  of  a  particular  name. 

1.  Then  Mother  Macey  helped  each  of  us  to  find  employment. 

2.  We  asked  Father  to  retain  his  interest  in  the  business. 

When  modified  by  a  possessive  pronoun  they  are  not 
capitalized  —  as,  They  asked  my  father  to  retain  his  in- 
terest in  the  business. 

16.  The  names  of  townships,  counties,  states,  and  other 
poHtical  divisions  of  the  country  —  as,  Logan  Township, 
Gibson  County,  Illinois,  New  England  States. 

17.  The  names  of  the  Deity  and  the  words  Bible  and 
Scripture,  together  with  the  names  of  the  books  of  the 
same  —  as,  God,  Saviour,  Jesus,  Holy  Ghost,  Genesis. 

18.  Every  proper  adjective  —  as,  American,  English, 
Smithsonian.  Many  words  of  this  class,  referring  to  mer- 
chandise, however,  are  now  written  with  a  small  letter. 
Remember  to  use  small  letters  when  writing  the  following: 

brussels  carpet  mercerized  lining 

chinaware  morocco  binding 

gothic  architecture  oriental  rugs 

india  ink  pasteurized  milk 

India  rubber  roman  type 

macadamized  road  russia  leather 

19.  Every  important  word  in  the  title  of  a  book,  article, 
poem,  or  theme.  Do  not  capitalize  a,  an,  and  the,  and  prepo- 
sitions and  conjunctions  unless  they  stand  first. 


CAPITALIZATION  135 

The  Demands  of  the  Times 
The  Elements  of  Business 

20.  The  words  /  and  O. 

21.  Terms  used  with  Roman  numerals  —  as,  Section  III, 
Chapter  X,  Group  V,  Plate  II,  etc. 

22.  The  initials  of  proper  names,  the  abbreviations  of 
titles  and  of  degrees : 

D.  S.  Jordan,  LL.D. 
Gov.  Small 

23.  Trade  names  —  as,  Gold  Dust,  Sunshine  Biscuits, 
Bon  Ami,  Shredded  Wheat,  etc.  Only  the  distinguishing 
name  of  common  products  need  be  capitalized  —  as,  Good 
Luck  rubbers,  Eagle  pencil.  Holeproof  silk  stockings,  etc. 

24.  Important  words  in  headings  and  salutations  of  let- 
ters —  as,  Gentlemen,  Dear  Sir,  My  dear  Sir,  etc.  Capi- 
talize only  the  first  word  in  the  complimentary  close  —  as, 
Yours  truly.  Yours  respectfully. 

25.  Abbreviated  words  such  as  No.,  Co.,  R.R.,  O.  K.,  etc. 

CAPITALIZATION  OF  ABBREVIATIONS 

Do  not  capitalize  a.m.  and  p.m.  meaning  before  noon 
and  after  noon.  The  United  States  Government  Printing 
Office  and  a  majority  of  the  largest  business  concerns  write 
these  abbreviations  with  small  letters.  They  may,  how- 
ever, be  expressed  with  small  capitals.  The  expression 
free  on  board  is  written  f .o.b.  —  small  letters.  Remember, 
however,  to  write  C.O.D.  —  all  capitals. 

CAPITALS  IN  SALES  LETTERS 

Frequently  in  sales  letters  and  in  advertisements  the 
name  of  the  product  is  spelled  out  in  capitals  in  order  to 


136  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

secure  more  attention.  The  most  important  phrase  or 
clause  in  a  strong  statement,  or  even  the  whole  sentence, 
may  be  written  all  capitals.  In  a  sales  letter  sent  out  by 
a  large  insurance  company  recently  occurs  this  statement, 
the  last  part  in  capitals:  ''Without  your  written  permis- 
sion, filed  with  the  Company  before  your  death,  YOUR 
WIFE  CAN  NEVER  CHANGE  THE  INCOME 
settlement:'  Capitalization  for  this  purpose,  how- 
ever, should  not  become  too  profuse,  for  it  would  be  likely 
to  defeat  its  own  purpose  —  it  would  distribute  attention, 
not  center  it.  Select  with  great  care  the  sentences  or  parts 
of  sentences  that  deserve  this  special  badge  of  attention. 


LESSON  THIRTY-TWO 

Abbreviations 

In  written  composition,  except  that  of  a  technical  na- 
ture, abbreviations  should  be  used  sparingly.  There  are, 
however,  a  few  that  are  almost  always  used;  namely, 
etc.,  e.g.,  viz.,  a.m.,  p.m.,  a.d.  and  B.C.  In  business  cor- 
respondence also,  the  body  of  the  letter  should  be  free  from 
unnecessary  abbreviations,  though  here,  of  course,  Co., 
C.O.D.  and  f.o.h.  must  be  added  to  the  list  just  given. 
Unless  the  nature  of  the  work  is  such  that  it  would  save 
a  great  deal  of  time  and  space,  not  many  more  should  be 
used. 

The  following  suggestions  should  be  helpful: 

1.  Do  not  abbreviate  the  word  company  unless  it  is  part 
of  a  firm  name  —  as.  The  Thomas  Milling  Co.  Some  com- 
panies object  to  its  abbreviation  even  here. 

2.  The  abbreviation  No.  should  be  used  only  with  fig- 
ures —  as.  No.  12.    Say  No.  8  or  number  eight,  not  number  8. 

3.  Do  not  use  rec^d,  resp^y,  yWs,  bl'd'g,  and  SupH.  Write 
out  received,  respectfully,  and  yours.  The  correct  abbrevia- 
tions for  building  and  superintendent  are  bldg.  and  Supt. 

4.  Do  not  use  R.R.  and  Ry.  for  railroad  and  railway  in 
the  body  of  the  letter  unless  they  are  part  of  a  company's 
name  —  as,  The  Wabash  R.R.  Co. 

5.  Although  an  abbreviation  of  per  centum,  the  expres- 
sion per  cent  is  not  generally  followed  by  a  period. 

6.  The  contracted  forms  15/,  2d,  3 J,  4///,  etc.,  are  not 
followed  by  a  period. 

137 


138 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


7.  Avoid  &*  for  and  except  in  a  company  name  and  do 
not  use  &*€  for  etc.    Never  say  and  etc. 

8.  Per,  via,  re,  and  Miss  are  not  abbreviations  and  there- 
fore should  not  be  followed  by  a  period.  Re  is  a  Latin 
word  meaning  in  reference  to,  in  regard  to,  or  regarding. 

9  Use  the  apostrophe  in  such  abbreviations  as  O.K'd, 
but  write  O.K.ing. 

ABBREVIATIONS  OF  THE  NAMES  OF  STATES 

The  following  are  the  abbreviations  approved  by  the 
Government  Printing  Ofhce.  Note  that  the  shortest  names, 
Idciho,  Iowa,  Maine,  Ohio,  and  Utah  should  not  be  abbre- 
viated. 


Alabama 

Ala. 

Nebraska 

Nebr. 

Arizona 

Ariz. 

Nevada 

Nev. 

Arkansas 

Ark. 

New  Hampshire 

N.  H. 

California 

Cal. 

New  Jersey 

N.J. 

Colorado 

Col. 

New  Mexico 

N.  Mex. 

Connecticut 

Conn. 

New  York 

N.  Y. 

Delaware 

Del. 

North  Carolina 

N.  C. 

District  of  Columbia 

DC. 

North  Dakota 

N.  Dak. 

Florida 

Fla. 

Oklahoma 

Okla. 

Georgia 

Ga. 

Oregon 

Oreg. 

Illinois 

lU. 

Pennsylvania 

Pa. 

Indiana 

Ind. 

Rhode  Island 

R.L 

Kansas 

Kans. 

South  Carolina 

S.  C. 

Kentucky 

Ky. 

South  Dakota 

S.  Dak. 

Louisiana 

La. 

Tennessee 

Tenn. 

Maryland 

Md. 

Texas 

Tex. 

Massachusetts 

Mass. 

Vermont 

Vt. 

Michigan 

Mich. 

Virginia 

Va. 

Minnesota 

Minn. 

Washington 

Wash. 

Mississippi 

Miss. 

West  Virginia 

W.  Va. 

Missouri 

Mo. 

Wisconsin 

Wis. 

Montana 

Mont. 

Wyoming 

Wyo. 

ABBREVIATIONS 


139 


ABBREVIATIONS  OF  THE  NAMES  OF  THE  MONTHS 

The  names  of  the  months  are  always  capitaHzed  and, 
therefore,  their  abbreviations  should  begin  with  a  capital 
letter.  Note  that  the  shortest  names,  May,  June,  and 
July,  should  not  be  abbreviated. 

January  Jan.  September  Sept. 

February  Feb.  October  Oct. 

March  Mar.  November  Nov. 

April  Apr.  December  Dec. 

August  Aug. 


COMMERCIAL  ABBREVIATIONS 


Ai 

first  class 

C.  0.  D. 

collect    on    de- 

Acct. or  a/c 

account 

livery 

Agt. 

agent 

Cor.  Sec. 

Corresponding 

A.M.     {ante 

Secretary 

meridiem) 

forenoon 

C.  P.  A. 

Certified  PubHc 

Assn.  or  Ass'n 

Association 

Accountant 

Asst.  or  Ass't 

Assistant 

Cr. 

Creditor,  credit 

Atty. 

attorney 

cwt. 

hundredweight 

Ave. 

avenue 

or  hundred- 

av. 

average 

weights 

bal. 

balance 

Dept. 

department 

bbl.  or  brl. 

barrel 

dft. 

draft 

B/L  or  B.  L. 

bill  of  lading 

disc,  or  disct. 

discount 

Bs/L 

bills  of  lading 

do.  (ditto) 

the  same 

Bldg. 

building 

dol. 

dollar 

bet. 

bought 

doz. 

dozen  or  dozens 

Boul.  or  Blvd. 

boulevard 

Dr. 

debit,  debtor 

Bros. 

brothers 

et  al  {et  alii) 

and  others 

bu. 

bushel 

Exch. 

exchange 

bus. 

bushels 

Exec. 

Executor 

c. 

cent 

f.  0.  b. 

free  gn  board 

c/o 

in  care  of 

ford,  or  for'd 

forward 

I40 


ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 


gal. 

gallon 

pes. 

pieces 

G.  P.  A. 

General   Pas- 

pd. 

paid 

senger  Agent 

pk. 

peck 

hhd. 

hogshead 

pkgs. 

packages 

h.  p.  or  H.  P. 

horsepower 

P.M.  (post  me^ 

i.e.  (id  est) 

that  is 

ridiem) 

afternoon 

Inc. 

incorporated 

P.O. 

post  office 

Ins. 

inspector,    in- 

pr. 

pair,  price 

surance 

Pres. 

President 

int. 

interest 

Prin. 

Principal 

inv. 

invoice 

P.  S. 

postscript 

invt. 

inventory 

pt. 

pint 

jour. 

journal 

qt. 

quart 

Jr.  or  jr. 

junior 

rect. 

receipt 

lb. 

pound 

Rec.  Sec. 

Recording  Sec- 

M. (mUle) 

one  thousand 

retary 

mdse. 

merchandise 

rev. 

revise,  revision 

mem.  or  memo. 

memorandum 

R.  R. 

railroad 

Messrs.  (Mes- 

Ry. 

railway 

sieurs) 

gentlemen 

s.  c. 

small  capitals 

mfg. 

manufactur- 

Sec. 

Secretary 

ing 

Sr.  or  sr. 

senior 

mfrs. 

manufactur- 

ss. 

to  wit 

ers 

St. 

street 

mfs. 

manufactures 

Supt. 

Superintend- 

Mgr. 

Manager 

ent 

mo. 

month 

Treas. 

Treasurer 

MS. 

manuscript 

Vice  Pres. 

Vice  Presi- 

MSS. 

manuscripts 

dent 

'N.B.inotabene) 

note  well 

viz.  (videlicet) 

namely 

No. 

number 

vs.  (versus) 

against 

O.K. 

all  correct 

W/B  or  W.  B. 

waybill 

oz. 

ounce      or 

W/Bs 

waybills 

ounces 

wt. 

weight 

payt. 

payment 

LESSON  THIRTY-THREE 

Unity  of  the  Sentence 

Careless  writers  often  express  two  or  more    unrelated 
thoughts  in  the  same  sentence  —  as : 

1.  We  are  at  a  loss  to  understand  why  you  did  not  keep  your 

promise  to  remit,  and  we  have  begun  many  suits  lately  to 
collect  past-due  accounts. 

2.  St.  Louis  should  always  extend  a  hearty  welcome  to  manu- 

facturers, and  it  has  one  of  the  largest  parks  in  the  United 
States. 

Sometimes  a  sentence  contains  two  ideas  that  it  is  really 
absurd  to  connect  —  as : 

Mr.  Annis  was  a  successful  manufacturer,  but  he  died  in  Cali- 
fornia. 

Sometimes  also  a  sentence  contains  too  many  members 
or  is  unduly  lengthened  by  the  addition  of  several  subor- 
dinate clauses  —  as : 

1.  We  agree  that  it  is  somewhat  late  to  address  you  in  regard  to 

this,  but  we  are  trying  to  get  your  account  in  proper  bal- 
ance, and  as  you  know  we  are  having  a  hard  problem  to 
solve  in  handling  our  returned  goods,  we  have  been  unable 
to  give  everything  its  proper  attention. 

2.  We  have  some  customers  who  wish  to  return  goods  which 

were  shipped  according  to  the  contract  which  we  have 
taken  great  pains  to  make  clear  to  all  that  do  business 
with  us. 

But  quite  often  there  is  not  enough  in  the  sentence. 
For  example,  a  subordinate  clause  will  be  mistaken  for  a 
sentence  and  made  to  stand  alone  —  as : 

You  having  made  no  effort  to  pay  your  past-due  account. 
Although  we  have  extended  to  you  most  courteous  treatment. 

14? 


142  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Again,  a  relative  clause  will  be  connected  with  a  state- 
ment by  and  or  hut^  when  the  connectives  should  be  omitted 
—  as: 

We  wrote  you  January  7  about  the  invoices  of  October  and 
November  and  which  should  have  been  paid  before  the 
Christmas  holidays. 

Sometimes  there  is  a  needless  change  of  the  subject  —  as : 

Our  Iowa  representative  visited  the  house  today,  and  business 
in  his  territory  was  reported  good. 

Note  the  improvement  when  the  subject  is  made  the 
same  —  as : 

Our  Iowa  representative  visited  the  house  and  reported  business 
good  in  his  territory. 

In  all  of  the  foregoing  cases,  the  writers  failed  to  make 
their  meanings  clear  because  they  did  not  express  their 
thoughts,  one  at  a  time,  in  complete  units.  That  is,  their 
sentences  lacked  unity. 

Unity  in  the  sentence  is  the  expression  of  but  one  main 
idea. 

Rule  I.  Do  not  unite  two  or  more  statements  unless  they 
are  closely  related  in  thought. 

Original:  I  was  greatly  disappointed  this  morning  to  find  that 
your  check  had  not  yet  reached  us,  and  I  told  the  manager  of 
the  Credit  Department  that  you  would  pay  your  bills  promptly. 

Improved:  Several  months  ago  I  told  the  manager  of  the  Credit 
Department  that  you  would  pay  your  bills  promptly.  This 
morning,  however,  I  was  greatly  disappointed  to  find  that 
your  check  had  not  reached  us. 

Rule  II.  Do  not  include  in  the  same  sentence  inconsistent 
or  absurd  ideas. 


UNITY  OF  THE   SENTENCE  143 

1.  Original:    Hoping  to  hear  from  you  at  an  early  date,  we 

trust  that  you  will  find  the  sale  of  our  line  satisfactory. 
Improved:     We  hope  to  hear  from  you  at  an  early  date. 
Meanwhile  we  trust  that  you  will  find  the  sale  of  our 
goods  satisfactory. 

2.  Original:    The  hat  was  undoubtedly  crushed  in  shipping,  and 

it  was  a  John  B.  Stetson  hat. 
Improved:     This  Stetson  hat  was  undoubtedly  crushed  in 
shipping. 

Rule  III.    Do  not  use  and  or  hut  to  connect  a  relative 
clause  with  a  sentence. 

1.  Original:    Referring  to  your  account  on  our  books,  we  find 

that  since  the  date  of  this  statement  you  have  paid  us 
$155.51,  and  which  remittance  we  appreciate. 
Improved:    We  appreciate  the  payment  of  $155.51  which  our 
record  of  your  account  shows  you  made  since  your  last 
statement. 

2.  Original:    We  have  received  many  orders  from  Mr.  W.  A. 

Miller,  a  well-known  retailer,  and  who  understands  the 
conditions  in  that  part  of  the  state. 
Improved:    We  have  received  many  orders  from  Mr.  W.  A. 
Miller,  a  well-known  retailer,  who  understands  conditions 
in  that  part  of  the  state. 

Rule  IV.     A  sentence  should  not  contain  too  many  mem- 
bers even  though  they  are  closely  related  in  thought, 

I.  Original:  This  statement  is  sent  for  comparison,  and  if,  at 
your  convenience,  you  will  be  kind  enough  to  check  it  over 
and  if  found  to  be  correct,  favor  us  with  a  remittance,  we 
shall  be  enabled  to  balance  your  account  down  to  the  point 
mentioned. 
Improved:  This  statement  is  sent  for  comparison.  Please 
check  it  over  at  your  convenience,  and  if  you  find  it  cor- 
rect, favor  us  with  a  remittance.  We  shall  then  be  able 
to  balance  your  account  down  to  the  time  mentioned. 


144  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

2.  Original:  We  are  sure  you  do  not  wish  us  to  discriminate 
against  our  good  customers;  however,  we  do  just  this,  if 
we  waive  interest  in  your  favor  while  other  customers  who 
for  some  reason  could  not  pay  for  their  purchases  on  the 
maturity  date  allow  us  interest  for  the  overtime. 
Improved:  We  are  sure  you  do  not  wish  us  to  discriminate 
against  our  good  customers  who  for  some  reason  could  not 
pay  for  their  purchases  on  the  maturity  date  and  have  al- 
lowed us  interest  for  the  overtime.  If,  however,  we  waive 
interest  in  your  favor,  this  is  precisely  what  we  do. 

Rule  V.  Do  not  mistake  a  phrase  or  a  clause  for  a  com- 
plete sentence.  ^ 

1.  Original:    We  do  not  urge  our  customers  to  put  their  private 

funds  into  these  bonds.    Although  we  have  ourselves  bought 
heavily  of  them. 
Improved:    Although  we  have  bought  heavily  of  these  bonds, 
we  do  not  urge  our  customers  to  put  their  private  funds 
into  them. 

2.  Original:    We  shipped  one  case  June  7,  price  twenty-seven 

dollars.    The  other  June  23,  price  thirty-six  dollars. 
Improved:    We  shipped  one  case  June  7,  price  twenty-seven 
dollars,  and  the  other  June  23,  price  thirty-six  dollars. 

Rule  VI.  When  clauses,  phrases,  and  single  parts  of 
speech  are  connected  by  and,  or,  but,  either  —  or,  neither 

—  nor,  etc.,  they  should  be  made  similar  in  form. 

Careless  writers  often  join  a  clause  and  a  phrase  by  one 
of  the  foregoing  connectives  when  both  expressions  should 
be  clauses  or  nouns. 

I.  Original:    We  could  not  continue  longer  in  business, /or  very 
few  orders  had  come  in  and  on  account  of  the  high  cost  of 
labor. 
Improved:    We  could  not  continue  longer  in  business,  for 
very  few  orders  had  come  in  and  the  cost  of  labor  was  high. 


UNITY  OF  THE  SENTENCE  145 

2.  Original:    The  company  decided  that  it  would  raise  the  wages 

of  its  employees  and  to  grant  them  a  bonus. 
Improved:    The  company  decided  to  raise  the  wages  of  its  em- 
ployees and  to  grant  thtm  a  bonus. 

3.  Original:    As  we  have  written  you  many  letters  and  no  reply 

having  been  received,  we  are  placing  your  account  in  the 
hands  of  our  attorney  for  collection. 

4.  Improved:    As  we  have  written  you  many  letters  and  have  re- 

ceived no  reply,  we  are  placing  your  account  in  the  hands 
of  our  attorney  for  collection. 

Careless  writers  also  unconsciously  shift  from  one  form 
of  the  verb  to  another,  from  present  time  to  past  time, 
from  one  pronoun  subject  to  another  and  from  one  form 
of  verb  to  an  unlike  form  —  as,  "  My  duties  are  to  answer 
the  telephone  and  filing  letter sJ^  This,  of  course,  should 
be  written:  "My  duties  are  to  answer  the  telephone  and 
file  letter s.^^ 

The  following  sentences  illustrate  these  types  of  errors : 

1.  Original:    Mr.  Hart  will  call  on  you  in  a  few  days,  and  sam- 

ples of  our  goods  will  be  shown  to  you. 
Improved:    Mr.  Hart  will  call  on  you  in  a  few  days  and  show 
you  samples  of  our  goods. 

2.  Original:    Just  then  a  customer  comes  in  and  wanted  to  re- 

turn some  goods  which  she  had  bought. 
Improved:    Just  then  a  customer  came  in  and  wanted  to  ex- 
change some  goods  which  she  had  bought. 

3.  Original:    We  appreciate  his  going  on  the  road  for  us,  his 

loyalty  to  the  house,  and  that  he  has  made  money  for  us. 
Improved:    We  appreciate  the  fact  that  he  went  on  the  road 
for  us,  was  loyal  to  the  house,  and  made  money  for  us. 

4.  Original:    We  regret  being  unable  to  replace  the  broken  chair 

and  that  you  have  decided  not  to  give  us  future  orders. 


146  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

Improved:    We  regret  that  we  are  unable  to  replace  the  broken 
chair  and  that  you  have  decided  not  to  give  us  future  orders. 

Rule  VII.     Avoid  any  needless  change  of  the  subject, 

1.  Original:    You  may  give  us  a  promissory  note  for  the  amount, 

or  a  check  may  be  sent  by  you. 
Improved:    You  may  give  us  a  promissory  note  for  the  amount 
or  send  us  your  personal  check. 

2.  Original:    Our  salesman  will  call  on  you  next  week,  and  our 

proposition  will  be  explained  to  you  in  detail. 
Improved:    Our  salesman  will  call  on  you  next  week  and  ex- 
plain our  proposition  in  detail. 


LESSON  THIRTY-FOUR 

Clearness  in  the  Sentence 

Clearness  requires  that  the  various  parts  of  the  sentence 
should  be  so  carefully  arranged  as  to  make  the  meaning 
unmistakable.  Observe  a  watchmaker  at  work.  How 
carefully  he  places  each  tiny  piece  in  its  proper  place,  and 
how  exact  he  makes  every  detail  of  his  work.  Before  the 
watch  will  run  and  keep  accurate  time,  every  part  must 
be  rightly  arranged  in  relation  to  the  whole.  The  watch 
will  run  and  keep  correct  time  only  when  its  parts  are  per- 
fectly adjusted.  In  precisely  the  same  way,  the  sentence 
can  do  its  work  best  only  when  each  part  is  in  its  proper 
position. 

In  order  that  you  may  correctly  arrange  the  details  of  a 
sentence,  you  should  keep  in  mind  the  following  principles : 

1.  Every  modifier  —  word,   phrase,   or  clause  —  should  be  so 

placed  that  it  will  qualify  or  be  properly  related  to  the  word 
intended.  For  example,  do  not  say,  "I  only  deducted  two 
per  cent."     Say,  "I  deducted  only  two  per  cent." 

2.  Every  pronoun  should  refer  unmistakably  to  the  noun  or 

pronoun  for  which  it  stands.  It  is  incorrect  to  say,  "Mr. 
Field  told  his  father  he  would  succeed."  We  do  not  know 
whether  the  pronoun  refers  to  Mr.  Field  or  his  father. 
Similarly,  it  is  incorrect  to  say,  "The  books  and  tablets 
were  received  three  days  after  we  received  the  pencils. 
This  was  on  January  15."  It  is  better  to  say,  "The  books 
and  tablets  were  received  January  15,  and  the  lead  pencils 
January  12"  (or  January  18  and  January  15,  according  to 
the  meaning). 

3.  A  summarizing  word  or  expression  —  such  as  these,  all  these, 

147 


148  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

these  and  many  more,  etc.  —  should  be  used  to  collect  the 
parts  of  a  long  subject  —  thus: 

To  act  as  trustee  of  property  left  with  it  as  guardian  of 
minors;  to  act  as  agent  in  the  management  of  real  prop- 
erty; to  act  as  receiver  for  defunct  concerns  of  all  kinds 
and  those  needing  reorganization;  to  act  as  depository  for 
trust  funds,  securities,  and  other  personal  property  —  these 
are  among  the  various  powers  granted  to  trust  companies. 

Clearness  also  requires  accuracy  of  statement.  For  ex- 
ample, note  the  following:  "There  were  12  doz.  shoe 
boxes  in  each  of  the  20  cases,  and  half  of  them  were  broken." 
As  the  statement  stands,  you  cannot  determine  whether  10 
of  the  cases  were  broken  or  120  dozen  of  the  boxes.  It  is 
better  to  state  the  sentence  as  follows:  "  There  were  20 
cases  each  containing  12  dozen  shoe  boxes.  Ten  of  the 
cases  were  broken." 

In  order  to  secure  clearness  in  the  sentence,  the  follow- 
ing rules  should  be  carefully  applied: 

Rule  I.  Adjectives  and  adverbs  should  he  so  placed  that 
there  can  he  no  doubt  as  to  what  they  modify. 
It  is  incorrect  to  say  — 

1.  One  pair  of  black  ladies'  stockings. 

2.  Our  tailored  babies'  coats. 

3.  Special  sale  of  hlackcalf  boys'  school  shoes. 

4.  I  only  asked  five  dollars  for  the  hat. 

5.  We  nearly  sold  all  the  stock  at  a  premium. 

6.  Every  box  was  not  broken. 

Note  the  gain  in  clearness  when  the  modifiers  are  rear- 
ranged: 

1.  One  pair  of  ladies'  black  stockings. 

2.  Our  babies'  tailored  coats. 


CLEARNESS  IN  THE   SENTENCE  149 

3.  Special  sale  of  boys'  blackcalf  school  shoes. 

4.  I  asked  only  five  dollars  for  the  hat. 

5.  We  sold  nearly  all  the  stock  at  a  premium. 

6.  Not  every  box  was  broken. 

Rule  II.  Like  adjectives  and  adverbs,  phrases  and  clauses 
should  be  so  placed  thai  they  will  modify  the  word  intended. 

In  the  following  sentences,  the  phrases  and  clauses  are 
misplaced : 

1.  Your  order  was  received  Saturday /or  two  Victrolas. 

2.  I  saw  a  man  wrapping  bundles  with  a  Roman  nose. 

3.  We  are  sending  you  a  statement  amounting  to  $250  of  your 

account. 

4.  Wanted:    A  horse  for  an  old  man  that  is  well  broken. 

5.  The  stoves  came  yesterday  in  good  condition  that  I  ordered. 

The  same  sentences,  when  correctly  arranged,  gain  much 
in  clearness: 

1.  Your  order  for  two  Victrolas  was  received  Saturday. 

2.  I  saw  a  man  with  a  Roman  nose  wrapping  bundles. 

3.  We  are  sending  you  a  statement  of  your  account  which  amounts 

to  $250. 

4.  Wanted:    A  horse  that  is  well  broken  for  an  old  man. 

5.  The  stoves  /  ordered  came  yesterday  in  good  condition. 

Rule  III.  There  should  be  a  definitely  expressed  noun 
or  pronoun  for  euery  participle  or  participial  phrase  to  modify, 
and  a  participial  modifier  should  be  placed  as  near  as  pos- 
sible to  the  word  it  modifies. 

The  following  are  incorrectly  written: 

1.  Knowing  your  needs,  hundreds  of  fall  raincoats  have  been 

placed  on  sale. 

2.  Having  secured  a  money  order,  the  bill  was  paid  by  me. 

3.  Walking  into  the  office,  a  telegram  was  seen  by  the  manager. 


150  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Note  carefully  the  changes  necessary  to  make  the  mean- 
ing clear: 

1.  Knowing  your  needs,  we  have  placed  hundreds  of  fall  rain- 

coats on  sale. 

2.  Having  secured  a  money  order,  I  paid  the  bill. 

3.  Walking  into  the  office,  the  manager  saw  a  telegram. 

Rule  IV.     A  sentence  should  he  so  constructed  that  the 
word  to  which  a  pronoun  refers  will  he  easily  discoverable. 
The  following  sentences  illustrate  errors  of  this  kind: 

1.  Mr.  Lee's  father  entered  the  hardware  business  when  he  was 

quite  young. 

2.  In  the  letter  it  says  the  goods  were  damaged. 

3.  We  are  interested  in  your  gasoline-feed  system,  but  it  would 

not  be  worth  our  while  considering  it  unless  it  is  protected 
by  patent. 

Note  the  gain  in  clearness  when  the  reference  of  each 
pronoun  is  made  definite: 

1.  When  Mr.  Lee  was  quite  young,  his  father  entered  the  hard- 

ware business. 

2.  The  letter  says  that  the  goods  were  damaged. 

3.  We  are  interested  in  your  gasoline-feed  system,  but  would 

not  consider  it  unless  the  device  were  protected  by  patent. 

Rule  V.  When  the  suhject  of  a  sentence  is  long  and  con- 
tains a  series  of  words,  phrases,  or  clauses,  both  clearness  and 
force  may  he  obtained  by  the  use  of  a  summarizing  word  — 
thus: 

Government  bonds,  or  those  issued  by  the  Federal  Government; 
state  and  municipal  bonds,  or  those  issued  by  states,  counties, 
school  districts,  cities,  and  villages;  railroad  bonds;  public 
utility  bonds,  or  those  issued  by  street  railways,  water,  gas, 


I 


CLEARNESS  IN  THE   SENTENCE  151 

and  electric  companies;  industrial  bonds,  the  issues  of  com- 
panies engaged  in  commercial  and  industrial  enterprises  — 
these  are  the  different  classes  of  bonds. 

Rule  VI.     Clearness  requires  accuracy  of  statement. 
The  following  sentences  contain  inaccuracies: 

1.  The  enclosed  statement  amounting  to  $250  and   showing   a 

balance  on  your  account  down  to  date  is  now  due. 

2.  The  shipment  of  June  7  was  for  December  shipment. 

In  the  first  of  the  foregoing,  one  should  not  speak  of  a 
statement  as  amounting  to  a  certain  sum  because  the 
sum  referred  to  is  evidently  the  balance  due;  and,  in  the 
second,  the  statement  is  so  inaccurate  as  to  make  it  a  puzzle. 
Note  how  each  may  be  improved: 

1.  The  enclosed  statement  of  your  account  shows  a  balance  of 

$250,  which  is  now  due. 

2.  The  goods  sent  you  June  7  were  originally  intended  for  De- 

cember shipment. 

Rule  VII.  Whenever  possible  use  simple  words,  but  use 
technical  words  if  necessary. 

The  following  sentences  contain  expressions  for  which 
technical  terms  should  be  used : 

1.  Please  send  me  two  packages  of  Examination  Paper. 

2.  We  shipped  you  a  box  of  shoes  on  Feb.  4. 

Note  the  improvement  in  them  when  technical  terms  are 
substituted: 

1.  Please  send  me  two  reams  of  Examination  Paper. 

2.  We  shipped  you  a  case  of  shoes  on  Feb.  4. 


LESSON  THIRTY-FIVE 

Emphasis  in  the  Sentence 

A  cleverly  written  advertisement  never  fails  to  arrest 
attention  and  secure  interest.  Have  you  ever  paused  to 
find  out  just  why  this  is  true?  If  so,  you,  no  doubt,  noticed 
the  naturalness,  newness,  and  charm  of  each  expression, 
its  directness  and  brevity,  every  word  performing  its  work 
in  the  most  effective  way.  You  found  important  words 
and  phrases  in  positions  where  they  would  compel  atten- 
tion, some  of  them  chosen  for  headings  and  set  in  large 
type.  In  short,  the  entire  advertisement  was  so  con- 
structed as  to  emphasize  every  fact.  In  much  the  same  way, 
in  all  of  your  writing  you  should  make  your  ideas  stand 
out  forcibly.     Every  sentence  should  possess  emphasis. 

Emphasis  in  the  sentence  is  the  force  of  an  idea  to  attract 
attention.  The  following  rules  will  be  found  effective  in 
securing  emphasis: 

Rule  I.  Avoid  worn-out  words  and  phrases  and  all  mean- 
ingless expressions. 

To  some  extent,  worn-out,  or  commonplace,  expressions 
are  likely  to  be  found  in  writing  of  any  kind,  but  especially 
in  letter  writing.  There  is  perhaps  a  reason  for  this. 
Business  letters  have  always  been  somewhat  encumbered 
with  legal  expressions  and  with  certain  servile  words  and 
phrases,  the  relics  of  an  overcourteous  day.  Then,  too, 
certain  convenient  words  have  become  overworked  merely 
because  people  do  not  think  carefully  enough  to  find  fresher 
expressions.    The  following  expressions  should  be  avoided: 

152 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE  SENTENCE  153 

1.  Advise.  This  word  is  too  often  used  for  inform  or 
tell. 

2.  At  hand,  to  hand,  duly  at  hand,  etc.  As  these  expres- 
sions are  entirely  useless,  they  should  be  avoided.  It  is 
better  to  refer  in  a  very  direct  manner  to  a  letter  by  giving 
subject  and  date  —  as,  "I  will  accept  the  offer  mentioned 
in  your  letter  of  June  8." 

3.  Beg  to  say,  beg  to  remain,  beg  to  advise,  etc.  These  are 
servile  expressions  which  are  no  longer  excusable.  Simply 
tell  what  you  have  to  say.  Do  not  say,  *'In  reply  we  beg 
to  say  that  we  cannot  accept  the  return  of  the  shoes,"  but 
"We  cannot  accept  the  return  of  the  shoes." 

4.  Contents  carefully  noted.  This  expression  is  useless  if 
not  entirely  senseless.  The  fact  that  you  reply  will  be 
evidence  that  the  contents  of  the  letter  have  been  noted. 
Omit  it  entirely. 

5.  Esteemed,  esteemed  favor,  kind  favor,  kindly,  etc. 
These  expressions  of  courtesy  have  become  meaningless  be- 
cause used  indiscriminately.  In  fact  they  have  become 
almost  servile.  The  word  favor  should  not  be  used  in  the 
sense  of  letter,  but  may  be  employed  to  express  its  true 
meaning. 

6.  Hand  you.  This  expression  is  inaccurate.  It  is  bet- 
ter to  say  enclose,  send  by  parcel  post,  etc. 

7.  Herewith.  This  word  is  unnecessary  when  used  with 
enclose.     It  is  greatly  overworked. 

8.  Inst.,  ult.,  and  prox.  These  terms  are  rightly  losing 
their  place  in  modern  business  writing.  It  is  much  better 
to  give  the  name  of  the  month.  For  example,  say  Jan- 
uary 10  rather  than  the  10th  inst. 


154  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

9.  Our  Mr,  Bennett,  This  expression  has  become  quite 
commonplace.  Say  Mr.  Bennett;  our  representative,  Mr. 
Bennett;  etc. 

10.  Recent  date.  It  is  generally  better  to  give  the  exact 
date.  Do  not  say,  "  In  response  to  your  letter  of  recent 
date,  would  say  that  the  merchandise  was  shipped  accord- 
ing to  contract."  Say,  ''  The  merchandise  which  you  men- 
tion in  your  letter  of  January  7  was  shipped  according  to 
contract." 

11.  Said  and  same.  These  words  belong  to  the  long  list 
of  overworked  legal  terms.  Instead  of  referring  to  a  thing 
as  said  letter,  said  contract,  etc.,  it  is  better  to  designate  it 
definitely  unless  you  are  writing  a  legal  document.  For 
example,  say  this  letter,  the  letter  of  June  7,  etc.  Same  is 
an  adjective,  not  a  pronoun.  Do  not  say,  "  We  regret  the 
delay  in  the  shipment  of  your  order  of  men's  shoes  and 
hope  same  has  not  caused  you  any  inconvenience."  Say, 
"  We  regret  the  delay  in  the  shipment  of  your  order  of 
men's  shoes  and  hope  this  has  not  caused  you  any  incon- 
venience." The  word  same  may  be  used  with  a  noun  or 
when  a  noun  is  understood  —  as,  "  This  contract  is  the 
same  (contract)  as  we  have  offered  our  other  cus- 
tomers." 

12.  State.  Try  to  use  other  words  occasionally  —  for 
example,  say,  tell,  describe,  present,  etc. 

13.  We,  I,  the  writer.  We  is  properly  used  in  writing 
for  a  firm,  but  do  not  hesitate  to  use  /  whenever  necessary. 
Do  not,  however,  use  /  and  we  interchangeably.  Some 
people  in  order  to  avoid  /  or  we  use  the  writer.  It  is  better 
to  use  I  or  we  whenever  necessary.     Do  not  say,  ^^The 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE   SENTENCE  155 

writer  of  this  letter  has  charge  of  the  Adjustment  Depart- 
ment," but  "I  have  charge  of  the  Adjustment  Department/' 

14.  Yours.  This  is  wrongly  used  for  your  letter  or  yours 
truly.    The  full  expressions  are  much  more  desirable. 

15.  Trite  expressions  at  the  close  of  a  letter.  Avoid 
sentences  beginning  with  hoping^  trusting,  believing,  etc. 
It  is  better  to  say,  "  We  trust  that  this  will  be  satisfactory." 
Such  terms  also  as  and  oblige,  I  am,  and  I  remain  should 
be  omitted. 

Rule  II.  Avoid  the  roundabout,  wordy  phrasing  of  ideas 
that  can  be  expressed  directly  and  briefly. 

Careless  writers  often  express  their  thoughts  in  long, 
roundabout  phrases  or  clauses  merely  because  they  do  not 
take  the  time  to  search  for  the  simple  expression  that  will 
convey  the  meaning  directly.  In  the  following  sentences 
note  this  fault : 

1.  Answering  your  recent  favor  addressed  to  us,  we  would  state 

that  under  separate  cover  we  are  mailing  you  samples  of 
the  dififerent  lines  of  letter  paper  that  we  carry,  and  trust 
you  will  find  what  you  require  among  them. 

2.  As  the  sum  in  question  is  materially  overdue,  we  feel  that  it 

should  be  paid  and  would  thank  you  to  let  us  have  a  re- 
mittance or  advise  in  regard  to  your  plans  as  to  when  you 
can  make  settlement. 

3.  It  is  our  preference  that  customers  remit  direct,  and  there- 

fore we  trust  that  you  will  give  this  your  first  attention 
and  send  us  your  personal  check. 

4.  We  wrote  you  with  reference  to  this  item  under  date  of  June 

27  advising  as  to  the  correctness  of  our  charge  and  feel 
sure  you  will  now  be  in  position  to  let  us  have  the  $50 
deducted  at  this  time  either  in  separate  check  or  include 
in  your  next  payment. 


156  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

5.  In  regard  to  the  $30  which  you  speak  of,  we  would  say  that 
we  find  that  this  amount  is  entered  on  your  account  under 
date  of  July  30  and,  with  an  additional  credit  of  $0.47  posted 
under  date  of  September  11,  has  been  used  to  offset  our 
debit  entry  of  June  28,  $30.47. 

The  foregoing  sentences  are  not  utterly  bad,  but  can  be 
restated  in  much  briefer  language.  Note  carefully  the 
changes  that  are  made  in  each: 

1.  We  are  mailing  you  the  samples  you  asked  for  the  other  day 

and  believe  you  will  find  among  them  just  what  you  want. 

2.  As  this  sum  is  materially  overdue,  please  remit  by  return 

mail  or  advise  definitely  concerning  the  payment  of  these 
bills. 

3.  As  we  prefer  to  have  our  customers  remit  direct,  we  trust 

you  will  send  us  your  check  by  return  mail. 

4.  We  wrote  you  on  July  27   that  our  charge  was  correct  and 

feel  sure  you  will  prefer  to  send  us  a  check  for  $50. 

5.  We  find  that  the  $30  you  mention  is  entered  on  our  account 

under  date  of  July  30  and,  with  an  additional  credit  of  $0.47 
entered  under  date  of  September  11,  has  been  used  to  off- 
set our  debit  entry  of  June  28,  $30.47. 

Rule  III.  Avoid  needless  repetition  of  words  and  phrases. 
Repetition  sometimes  secures  emphasis,  but  as  a  rule 
it  is  to  be  avoided.     Note  the  following  examples: 

1.  We  collected  together  all  the  boxes. 

2.  We  have  repeatedly  warned  you  again  and  again  that  we 

cannot  accept  the  return  of  goods  sold  according  to  con- 
tract. 

3.  The  railway  company  resold  the  goods  again. 

4.  Knowing  that  you  will  prefer  to  keep  your  credit  good,  we 

linow  that  you  will  pay  this  bill. 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE  SENTENCE  157 

5.  We  would  have  sent  you  two  tables,  but  we  had  but  one  in 
stock. 

Note  the  gain  in  emphasis  when  these  sentences  are 
restated  without  the  repetitions: 

1.  We  collected  all  the  boxes. 

2.  We  have  repeatedly  warned  you  that  we  cannot  accept  the 

return  of  goods  sold  according  to  contract. 

3.  The  railway  company  resold  the  goods. 

4.  Knowing  that  you  will  prefer  to  keep  your  credit  good,  we 

believe  you  will  pay  this  bill. 

5.  We  would  have  sent  you  two  tables,  but  we  had  only  one  in 

stock. 

Rule  IV.  Avoid  the  telegraphic  style  of  writing. 

In  correspondence  careless  writers  often  omit  pronoun 
subjects  —  for  example,  "  Have  received  your  letter  of 
June  4."  It  is  much  better  to  write,  "  We  have  received 
your  letter  of  June  4."  They  also  frequently  omit  a,  an, 
the,  and  other  short  words  —  for  example,  "  Have  received 
check  and  appHed  on  open  account."  Note  the  gain  in 
emphasis  when  stated  as  follows:  "  We  have  received  your 
check  and  applied  it  on  your  open  account."  This  fault, 
with  the  use  of  too  many  abbreviations,  gives  rise  to  what 
is  sometimes  called  the  telegraphic  style  of  writing,  which 
is  only  admissible  in  letters  from  one  department  to  another 
in  the  same  business  establishment. 

Rule  V.  Emphasis  may  sometimes  he  secured  by  trans- 
posing words,  phrases,  or  clauses. 

The  very  fact  that  an  expression  is  taken  out  of  its  nat- 
ural position  and  placed  at  the  beginning  of  a  sentence  is 
sufficient  to  center  attention  upon  it.     To  place  a  phrase 


IS8  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

or  clause  at  the  beginning  also  affords  variety  of  sentence 
structure.  In  the  following  sentences  the  phrases  and 
clauses  stand  in  the  natural  order: 

1.  We  believe  you  will  like  the  suit  if  you  wear  it  a  few  times. 

2.  You  should  have  received  the  goods  on  April  lo  according  to 

the  usual  time  required  for  shipments  to  reach  your  town. 

3.  I  refer  you  to  Mr.  J.  W.  Saunders  for  further  information  as 

to  my  character  and  ability. 

Note  the  gain  in  variety  effected  by  transposing  phrases 
and  clauses : 

1.  //  you  will  wear  the  suit  a  few  times,  we  beheve  you  will  like 

it. 

2.  According  to  the  usual  time  required  for  shipments  to  reach 

your  town,  you  should  have  received  the  goods  on  April 
10. 

3.  For  further  information  as  to  my  character  and  ability,  I  refer 

you  to  Mr.  J.  W.  Saunders. 

The  second  set  of  sentences  is  no  better  than  the  first; 
but  such  transpositions  often  give  variety.  For  example, 
the  following  sentences  are  correct,  but  monotonous: 

I  came  to  your  office  at  eight.  You  were  not  there,  but  had 
gone  to  the  factory.  I  followed  you  to  the  factory.  You 
were  not  there  when  I  arrived.  You  had  returned  to  the 
office.  I  went  back  to  your  office  and  found  that  you  had 
left.    I  went  home.    I  will  come  again  to  see  you  to-morrow. 

Note  how  the  transposition  of  words  in  one  sentence  and 
the  union  of  two  sentences  have  improved  the  paragraph 
as  a  whole. 

I  came  to  your  office  at  eight.  You  were  not  there  but  had 
gone  to  the  factory.  I  followed  you  to  the  factory  and  then 
back  again  to  your  office,  but  missing  you  at  both  places  I 
went  home.    To-morrow  I  will  come  again  to  see  you. 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE  SENTENCE  159 

Rule  VI.  Emphasis  may  he  secured  by  so  constructing 
the  sentence  that  its  meaning  is  incomplete  or  suspended  until 
the  end  is  reached.^ 

The  following  sentences  illustrate  this  type: 

1.  Except  when  she  was  called  from  her  desk  to  consult  with 

her  employer,  the  stenographer  never  left  her  work  for  a 
moment. 

2.  Until  a  few  weeks  ago  when  we  collected  the  claim  from  the 

railroad  company,  we  had  paid  no  attention  to  this  in- 
voice. 

3.  Walking  into  his  ofhce,  the  manager  saw,  lying  on  the  floor 

before  him,  several  important  papers. 

Sometimes  changing  the  position  of  a  phrase  or  clause 
will  produce  the  desired  result.*  For  example,  take  the 
sentence,  "  Prices  advanced  every  day  as  the  war  con- 
tinued." This  may  be  changed  as  follows:  ''As  the  war 
continued,  prices  advanced  every  day." 

By  changing  the  structure  of  a  loose  compound  sentence, 
you  may  suspend  the  meaning  to  the  end.  For  example, 
you  may  change  one  of  the  members  to  a  subordinate 
clause  or  a  participial  phrase.  The  following  are  examples 
of  loose  compound  sentences: 

1.  I  have  received  no  reply  to  my  letter,  and  as  the  account  is 

still  open,  I  earnestly  request  that  you  take  some  action  to 
effect  a  settlement. 

2.  You  have  not  made  arrangements  with  the  bank  to  take  up 

this  draft,  and  therefore  we  are  writing  to  ask  that  you 
call  at  the  bank  without  delay  and  pay  the  paper  or  send 
us  a  remittance  direct. 
*  Such  sentences  are  commonly  called  periodic,  while  those  that  are  so 

constructed  that  they  could  be  broken  at  some  point  before  the  end  and  yet 

leave  a  completed  meaning  are  called  loose  sentences. 


i6o  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

3.  We  do  not  think  you  are  aware  of  the  fact  that  this  balance 
is  due,  and  so  we  bring  it  to  your  attention. 

Note  the  variation  shown  when  one  of  the  members  is 
changed  to  a  subordinate  clause  or  a  phrase: 

1.  As  I  have  received  no  reply  to  my  letter  and  as  the  account  is  still 

open,  I  earnestly  request  that  you  take  some  action  to  effect 
a  settlement. 

2.  Since  you  have  not  made  arrangements  with  the  bank  to  take  up 

this  draft,  we  ask  that  you  call  there  without  delay  and 
pay  the  paper,  or  send  us  a  remittance  direct. 

3.  Thinking  perhaps  that  you  are  not  aware  of  the  fact  that  this 

balance  is  due,  we  are  bringing  it  to  your  attention. 

Sometimes  a  phrase  or  even  a  single  word  can  be  made 
to  take  the  place  of  a  clause.  For  example,  take  the  sen- 
tence, "  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  an  office  manager  will 
choose  a  stenographer  who  has  been  well  trained.'^  Where 
variety  is  desired  this  can  be  stated  by  changing  the  clause 
to  an  adjective  —  thus:  "  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  an  office 
manager  will  choose  a  well-trained  stenographer." 

Rule  VII.  Emphasis  may  be  secured  by  the  use  of  short 
sentences. 

Too  many  short  sentences,  however,  should  not  be  used, 
but  judiciously  employed  they  are  an  effective  means  of 
securing  emphasis. 

Rule  VIII.  Emphasis  may  be  secured  by  the  use  of  a  dash. 

A  true  sale  yields  a  threefold  profit  —  to  the  manufacturer,  to 
the  seller,  and  to  the  buyer. 

The  following  ad  from  the  Saturday  Evening  Post  shows 
how  effective  emphasis  may  be  used  in  written  composi- 
tion.  Note  that  Rules  I,  II,  and  III  are  observed  throughout. 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE   SENTENCE 


i6i 


The  Heat  that  Molded  Mountains  Awaits  Your  Commands 

Rule  VI.  Not  since  the  mighty  upheavals  of  creation  has  the 
world  known  a  flame  so  intensely  hot  as  that  produced 
by  burning  acetylene  gas  combined  with  oxygen. 

Rule  IV.  No  instrument  has  yet  been  devised  capable  of  ac- 
curately measuring  the  terrific  temperature  of  the  ox- 
acetylene  flame  which  is  estimated  at  6300°  Fahrenheit. 

Rule  VIII.  Thanks  to  modern  industrial  enterprise,  this  tremen- 
dous heat  has  been  confined,  harnessed,  and  converted 
into  energy  to  serve  American  manufacturers  —  a 
worker  of  miracles  controlled  by  a  twist  of  the  fingers! 

Rule  VII.  Cracked  and  broken  parts  are  remade.  This  is  done 
in  an  incredibly  short  time  and  at  surprisingly  low  cost. 
Worn  surfaces  are  built  up  to  their  original  dimensions. 
They  are  every  bit  as  serviceable  as  when  new. 

Rule  VIII.  And  the  tiny  oxweld  cutting  flame  slices  through 
iron  and  steel  as  a  knife  cuts  butter  —  making  a  clean- 
edged  cut  in  less  time  than  it  takes  a  man  to  saw 
through  a  corresponding  thickness  of  wood. 

Rule  VII.  The  applications  of  oxwelding  and  cutting  to  both 
production  and  reclamation  are  apparently  limitless. 
The  process  is  being  used,  at  a  great  saving  of  time  and 
money,  in  thousands  of  plants. 

Rules  VI        Oxweld  Service  Engineers,  stationed  in  more  than 

and  VII.  fifty  centrally  situated  cities,  are  ready  to  demonstrate 
how  oxwelding  and  cutting 'may  be  appHed  to  your  ad- 
vantage in  your  plant.  A  word  will  bring  one  of  these 
experts  to  your  door. 

Rule  I.  Write,  wire,  or  telephone  to  the  nearest  address  below 

for  immediate  attention. 

Rule  I.  An  illustrated  booklet,  "Oxweld  Can  Do  It!"  will  be 

sent  on  request.  It  tells  what  oxweld  is  doing  for  others 
and  what  it  can  do  for  you.  (By  permission  of  the 
Saturday  Evening  Post.) 


LESSON  THIRTY-SIX 

The  Paragraph 

Every  writer  or  speaker  who  thinks  clearly  divides  his 
subject  into  steps  or  divisions  in  each  of  which  he  expresses 
a  definite  idea.  These  divisions  are,  of  course,  clearly 
marked  for  the  reader  by  indentation  or  by  double  spacing. 
A  paragraph  consists  of  a  group  of  sentences,  bound  by  a 
close  relation  in  idea,  which  develops  a  single  subject  or 
topic. 

The  purpose  of  the  paragraph  is  to  aid  both  the  mind 
and  the  eye.  The  eye  would  tire  of  the  unbroken  page 
just  as  it  would  of  the  continuous  sentence;  and  without 
paragraph  divisions,  the  mind  could  not  so  easily  see  the 
topics  of  thought  that  were  in  the  writer's  mind. 

Read  carefully  the  following  paragraph.  Note  that 
there  is  a  single  sentence  in  which  the  central  idea  is  ex- 
pressed and  that  it  stands  at  the  beginning.  This  is  called 
the  topic  sentence.  Sometimes  it  appears  at  the  beginning 
of  the  paragraph,  sometimes  at  the  end. 

"Packard  trucks  are  priced  at  a  figure  which  permits  the  na- 
tion's greatest  producer  of  high-grade  commercial  vehicles  to 
manufacture  a  good  truck.  That  price  protects  you  against  ex- 
cessive after  cost.  It  is  your  guarantee  of  continual  and  effi- 
cient truck  operation.  Its  economy  becomes  more  pronounced 
day  after  day  and  your  truck  is  running  smoothly  and  willingly 
long  after  the  thirty  per  cent  proposition  has  gone  into  the  dis- 
card. Its  earning  power  is  almost  unlimited,  given  average  care 
and  attention." 

The  first  sentence  in  the  foregoing  is  the  topic  sentence  — 
that  is,  it  tells  what  the  topic  of  the  entire  paragraph  is 

162 


THE   PARAGRAPH  163 

to  be.  By  shortening  it  we  can  give  the  paragraph  the 
title:  The  Price  of  Packard  Trucks  Permits  the  Producer 
to  Manufacture  a  Good  Truck.  This  can  be  shortened  into 
the  title:  High  Price  Means  Economy.  Of  course  the 
writer  does  not  use  the  word  high.  From  his  viewpoint  it 
is  not  high,  but  low,  in  the  long  run. 

There  is  no  detail  in  the  entire  paragraph  that  does  not 
develop  the  topic  expressed  in  the  topic  sentence. 

Often  your  thoughts  on  a  topic  can  be  expressed  in  a 
single  sentence.  This  is  particularly  true  in  business  cor- 
respondence. The  following  is  an  example  of  what  is  called 
the  single-sentence  paragraph. 

"Packard  service  is  regarded  as  the  embodiment  of  all  that 
should  be  —  a  thing  to  be  counted  on  in  a  time  of  need  —  a 
vital  necessity  to  be  seriously  considered  when  making  a  pur- 
chase of  motor  equipment." 

Note  carefully  the  topic  sentence  in  the  following  para- 
graph, and  observe  how  every  sentence  helps  to  develop 
the  idea  and  is  subordinate  to  it: 

^^  There  is  nothing  that  can  injure  you  much  more  at  the  very 
start  of  your  sale  than  tardiness.  The  customer  feels  that  he  has 
granted  you  a  great  favor  in  stating  an  exact  time  when  he  will 
be  willing  to  see  you.  It  is  eminently  fitting,  therefore,  that  you 
do  not  waste  any  of  his  time  —  not  one  minute  of  it.  It  is  said 
that  Marshall  Field  made  it  a  condition  of  his  becoming  a  di- 
rector of  any  corporation  that  all  meetings  were  to  begin  on 
time.  Nothing  irritates  a  prompt,  exact,  businesslike  man 
much  more  than  to  be  compelled  to  wait.  —  Read^s  Salesman- 
ship. 

Note  also  the  topic  sentence  of  the  following  paragraph 


1 64  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

and  the  relation  to  it  of  every  sentence  in  the  series.     Could 
a  single  word  be  omitted? 

(i)  Topic  "(i)  When  we  say  that  Packard  trucks  are  built, 

(2)  Durability         we  mean  all  that  that  word  implies.    (2)  Statistics 

prove  that  built  trucks  outlive  all  others  at  least 

(3)  Scarcity  twice  over.     (3)  You  can  count  the  "built"  trucks 

(4)  Economy  on  the  fingers  of  one  hand.     (4)  Economy  is  built 

(5)  Economy  into  every  piece  of  the  Packard  product.    (5)  This 

(6)  Economy  is  what  you  buy.    (6)  It  is  what  pays  you  dividends 

thereafter." 

In  the  following  paragraph  the  topic  sentence  comes  at 
the  close: 

"The  Packard  truck  has  a  strong  and  powerful  motor.  It  has 
a  strong  rear  axle.  Its  parts  have  all  been  designed,  built,  and 
tested  to  fill  a  given  purpose.  In  short,  it  is  mechanically  the 
most  perfect  tru^k  on  the  market. '^ 

The  narrative  paragraph,  which  is  used  in  telling  of  busi- 
ness transactions,  current  events,  incidents,  and  stories, 
does  not  usually  require  a  topic  sentence.  If  the  transac- 
tion or  incident  is  told  in  a  single  paragraph,  however, 
there  should  be  a  sentence  at  the  beginning  stating  the 
time,  place,  characters,  and  circumstances.  The  details 
are  then  added  in  the  time  order  —  that  is,  in  the  order 
in  which  they  occurred. 

Note  carefully  the  opening  statement  of  the  following: 

"One  day  last  winter  when  the  thermometer  registered  about 
twenty  below  a  friend  of  mine  looking  out  of  the  window  at  the 
hard  going  on  the  streets  below,  remarked:  'My,  I  wish  I  had 
bought  that  Packard  truck  you  were  trying  to  sell  me  last  sum- 
mer. It  would  save  a  lot  of  money  I  am  now  paying  for  substi- 
tute hire.    Now  just  look  at  that  truck.     Would  you  consider  it 


THE  PARAGRAPH  165 

worth  eighteen  dollars  a  day?     Its  power  is  hardly  sufficient  to 
pull  itself,  let  alone  a  load.'  " 

Of  course  in  longer  narratives  where  there  are  a  series 
of  related  paragraphs,  such  an  opening  sentence  could  be 
expected  only  at  the  beginning  of  the  first  one. 

Descriptive  paragraphs  also  do  not  usually  require  a 
definite  statement  of  the  idea  in  a  topic  sentence.  How- 
ever, if  the  writer  has  had  a  single  topic  in  mind,  you  can 
easily  find  it.  For  example,  if  he  is  describing  an  article 
he  wishes  to  sell,  he  will  try  to  create  a  definite  impression. 
He  will  keep  the  customer  constantly  in  mind  and  will 
appeal  to  desire.  If  the  customer  knows  the  article  well, 
if  it  is  a  staple  product,  the  writer  will  select  only  the  details 
that  will  show  superiority  of  material,  low  price,  service, 
etc.     Note  the  central  idea  of  the  following  paragraph. 

"The  Packard  Car  commands  an  action  that  is  prime  and 
quiet,  a  control  that  is  as  velvet  to  the  touch.  In  the  owner's 
service,  functions  a  mechanism  so  delicately  and  yet  so  ruggedly 
constructed,  that  though  his  ear  scarcely  can  hear  its  movement, 
not  his  sternest  usage  can  bully  it  into  weakness." 

THE    SHORT  PARAGRAPH  IN  BUSINESS 

The  short  paragraph  is  popular  in  business  correspond- 
ence. Turn  to  the  sales  letter,  the  adjustment  letter  —  in 
fact,  to  any  business  letter  —  and  you  will  find  short 
pointed  paragraphs.  The  purpose,  of  course,  is  to  secure 
both  emphasis  and  clearness.  Quite  often  —  and  indeed 
it  is  almost  the  general  practice  —  business  men  make  each 
important  fact  stand  out  by  placing  it  m  a  separate  para- 
graph. Each  point  will  thereby  be  made  so  obvious  as 
not  to  be  overlooked  or  misunderstood. 


i66  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Frequently  the  opening  and  closing  paragraphs  consist 
of  but  a  single  sentence.  When  necessary  to  refer  to  the 
previous  letter  or  to  acknowledge  an  enclosure,  this  part 
should,  as  a  rule,  be  made  the  first  paragraph.  In  trying 
to  be  brief,  however,  remember  to  avoid  worn-out  phrases 
and  undue  formality.  Strive  to  be  concise,  but  original 
in  expression.     Note  the  following  opening  paragraphs: 

"Your  letter  of  August  20  regarding  complaint  on  order 
C-273654  has  been  received." 

"The  catalog  for  which  you  asked  in  your  letter  of  March  8 
has  been  mailed  and  we  believe  you  can  find  listed  just  the 
fixtures  you  want." 

"We  are  pleased  to  enclose  samples  of  letters  asked  for  in  your 
letter  of  August  21." 

"Do  you  know  that  we  are  not  selling  motor  trucks  as  we  used 
to,  but  rather  we  are  selling  transportation?" 

The  concluding  paragraph  should  be  equally  concise  and 
especially  free  from  worn-out  expressions.  Note  the  fol- 
lowing examples: 

"Will  you  kindly  take  this  matter  up  with  your  manager  so 
that  it  will  eliminate  our  taking  any  such  action  on  your  future 
shipments?  " 

"We  hope  this  has  caused  you  no  inconvenience." 

"If  you  find  the  goods  satisfactory  —  and  I  think  you  will  — 
you  may  remit  for  them  in  July." 

"Don't  you  want  to  go  into  the  facts  and  figures  with  a  rep- 
resentative of  our  company?  It  will  mean  dollars  in  your 
pocket.    When  shall  we  have  him  call?" 

In  order  to  paragraph  correctly,  the  writer  must  formu- 
late a  plan  for  his  article  or  letter  and  Hmit  each  paragraph 
to  one  special  or  particular  part  of  that  outline. 


THE  PARAGRAPH  167 

When  you  study  letter  writing,  you  will  learn  what  a 
number  of  these  plans  are.  For  example,  you  will  learn 
that  in  the  sales  letter  one  plan  is  to  follow  these  steps: 
attention,  interest,  desire,  action;  another,  attention,  in- 
terest, proof,  persuasion,  inducement,  and  action;  another, 
attention,  explanation,  proof,  persuasion;  another,  atten- 
tion, interest,  persuasion;  and  yet  another,  attention,  in- 
terest, persuasion,  inducement,  etc.  All  these  plans  con- 
form to  the  principles  on  which  successful  selhng  is  based. 
We  have  nothing  to  do  with  that  here  except  as  it  applies 
to  paragraphing.  It  is  sufficient  at  this  time  to  know  that 
there  must  be  a  scientific  order  of  topics,  and  that  each 
topic  must  have  a  separate  paragraph,  and  no  paragraph 
should  contain  more  than  one  topic. 

The  following  will  show  a  business  letter  properly  para- 
graphed : 

"If  a  man  should  suddenly  step  into  your  office  and 
say,  'Mr.  Brown,  I  will  increase  the  efficiency  of  your 

Attention  pick-up  and  delivery  system  twofold  today,  tomorrow, 
and  every  day  thereafter,  at  a  cost  no  greater  than  you 
are  now  paying,  and  possibly  less,'  what  would  you 
say? 

"Hundreds  of  firms  have  had  that  same  assertion  put 

Explanation  to  them  in  the  last  few  years,  and  they  have  done  what 
you  would  do  —  grasped  the  opportunity.  Packard 
trucks  have  come  to  their  rescue.  They  are  proving  the 
absolute  truth  of  the  statement. 

"Their  problems  have  not  differed  greatly  from  yours, 
and  they  have  found  it  highly  profitable  to  Packardise 
their  business.    They  know  that  under  the  old  system 

Proof  of  horse  and  wagon,  or  unreliable  truck  deliveries,  they 

were  constantly  harassed  with  breakdowns  just  when 


i68  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

they  were  most  costly  and  with  innumerable  petty  wor- 
ries that  add  to  the  burden  of  life. 

"Packards  have  revolutionized  this.  They  stand  up. 
Persuasion  They  represent  an  asset  which  other  buyers  could  not  do 
without. 

''Can  you?'' 


LESSON  THIRTY-SEVEN 
Unity  of  the  Paragraph 

Unity  of  the  paragraph  is  as  important  as  unity  of  the 
sentence.  In  the  foregoing  lesson  you  learned  that  a  para- 
graph contains  a  central  idea,  often  summed  up  in  a  state- 
ment called  the  topic  sentence,  and  a  number  of  details  that 
help  to  develop  the  idea.  When  the  details  are  properly 
arranged  to  support  the  main  idea,  there  is  produced  that 
singleness  of  effect  that  is  called  unity. 

In  order  to  assist  in  securing  unity,  you  should  observe 
certain  principles  which  will  be  stated  and  illustrated. 

Rule  I.     A  paragraph  should  present  but  one  central  idea. 

Note  that  the  following  selection  taken  from  a  sales 
letter  contains  two  main  ideas: 

"Any  piece  of  machinery  is  only  as  strong  as  its  weakest  part. 
If  a  truck  has  a  good  rear  axle,  a  strong  frame,  but  an  under- 
powered engine,  you  will  surely  have  trouble.  So  it  is  with  any 
part  of  it.  A  truck  to  be  right  must  be  built  to  serve  a  given  pur- 
pose, each  little  piece  properly  designed  and  manufactured  to 
fit  with  its  component  parts,  and  the  whole  considered  from  the 
angle  of  a  single  unit.  The  result  becomes  mechanical  perfec- 
tion in  so  far  as  human  ingenuity  can  make  it  so." 

In  order  to  secure  unity,  divide  the  passage  into  two 
paragraphs  as  follows: 

"Any  piece  of  machinery  is  only  as  strong  as  its  weakest  part. 
If  a  truck  has  a  good  rear  axle,  a  strong  frame,  but  an  under- 
powered engine,  you  will  surely  have  trouble.  So  it  is  with 
every  part  of  it. 

"A  truck  to  be  right  must  be  built  to  serve  a  given  purpose,  each 
little  piece  properly  designed  and  manufactured  to  fit  with  its 

169 


170  ACTUAL  BUSINESS   ENGLISH 

component  parts,  ^nd  the  whole  considered  from  the  angle  of  a 
single  unit.  The  result  becomes  mechanical  perfection  in  so  far 
as  human  ingenuity  can  make  it  so." 

If  a  paragraph  possesses  unity,  its  central  idea  can  be 
expressed  in  a  topic  sentence.  If  it  requires  more  than  one 
such  statement  to  express  the  topic,  there  should  be  more 
than  one  division. 

Rule  IL  Minor  details  that  do  not  help  to  develop  the 
central  idea  should  be  excluded. 

In  narration  select  the  essential  details  and  state  them 
in  the  order  of  occurrence.  Do  not  turn  aside  to  mention 
something  that  has  nothing  to  do  with  your  story.  If  you 
feel  that  you  should  begin  a  statement  with  "  By  the  way," 
you  had  better  omit  the  sentence  altogether. 

If  you  are  describing  an  unfamiHar  article  or  something 
entirely  new,  you  should  give  full  details.  If  the  customer 
knows  the  article  well,  however,  you  will  not  need  to  give 
many  details. 

Too  many  details  destroy  the  singleness  of  effect  and 
purpose  which  gives  unity.  The  following  example  shows 
a  description  of  men's  suits  which  contains  'unnecessary 
details: 

"We  are  putting  on  sale  more  than  a  thousand  suits  of  men's 
clothes.  They  include  all  the  soft  wool  materials  —  blue  serge, 
velour-finished  cassimeres,  fine-twill  flannels,  etc.  The  colors 
are  black,  blue,  gray,  and  brown.  Many  of  the  suits  have 
shades  of  green  in  them.  Some  of  them  have  small  stripes  and 
checks,  others  being  plain.  The  styles  are  correct  and  almost 
every  design  may  be  found.  The  coats  include  double-breasted 
ones  and  pinch-backs.  There  are  also  a  great  number  of  sack 
coats.    The  collars  fit  nicely  and  there  are  no  wrinkles  across  the 


UNITY  OF  THE  PARAGRAPH  171 

shoulders.  All  trimmings  and  linings  are  of  the  finest  satin  and 
silk.  You  will  like  these  suits  if  you  see  them.  They  would  sell 
for  seventy-five  dollars  if  made  to  measure." 

Since  the  customer  is  familiar  with  men's  suits,  minute 
details  are  unnecessary.  Note  the  improvement  when 
restated : 

"We  offer  more  than  a  thousand  men's  suits.  All  the  beauti- 
ful soft  wool  materials  of  rich  color  and  design  that  were  so 
scarce  a  year  ago  are  here  in  abundance.  You  will  find  correct 
styles,  single  and  double  breasted,  snappy  Hues  that  make  you 
appear  well  dressed,  smart  fitting  collars,  and  excellent  trim- 
mings and  linings.  These  suits  would  sell  for  seventy-five  dol- 
lars each  if  made  to  measure." 

Rule  III.  Determine  definitely  a  single  point  of  view 
and  hold  to  it  throughout  the  paragraph. 

In  business  writing,  select  the  point  of  view  of  the  reader 
and  hold  to  it.  At  least  you  should  not  change  it  without 
giving  definite  notice.  Be  careful  not  to  confuse  your  own 
interests  with  his,  for  you  will  find  a  natural  tendency  to 
change  from  the  you-point  of  view  to  the  I-point  of  view. 

Moreover,  you  should  keep  in  mind  the  class  of  customers 
to  whom  you  are  writing.  And  this  is  true  whether  of 
description,  explanation,  or  argument.  If  you  were  sell- 
ing motor  trucks,  for  example,  you  would  hardly  write  the 
same  description  and  explanation  to  the  farmer  as  to  the 
retail  merchant,  nor  would  you  use  the  same  argument. 

Note  the  following  example  written  from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  farmer: 

"In  the  busy  season  the  farmer  finds  the  motor  truck  a  dis- 
tinct advantage.     Other  conveyances  are  too  slow  or  fail  en- 


172  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

tirely.    But  the  truck  can  be  depended  upon  to  get  perishable 
goods  quickly  to  market  and  to  bring  in  supplies." 

Compare  the  foregoing  with  this  paragraph  written  to 
the  retail  merchant: 

"In  cold  and  stormy  weather  customers  appreciate  delivery 
service  more  than  ever.  They  find  it  a  distinct  advantage  to 
deal  with  a  house  that  brings  goods  to  their  very  door  and  saves 
them  the  discomforts  of  shopping." 

In  your  text  on  letter  writing,  Rule  III  will  be  discussed 
from  the  standpoint  of  salesmanship.  What  you  are  to 
study  here  is  its  effect  on  paragraphing,  which  may  be 
restated  in  the  following  way : 

The  you-point  of  view  and  the  I-point  of  view  must  never 
be  mixed  in  the  same  paragraph.  The  style  of  the  para- 
graph also  must  consistently  recognize  the  general  char- 
acter, occupation,  education,  or  other  important  facts 
about  the  receiver  of  the  letter,  and  not  change  from  one 
type  to  another. 


LESSON  THIRTY-EIGHT 

Clearness  in  the  Paragraph 

Often  through  lack  of  definite  planning,  careless  writers 
fail  to  arrange  their  sentences  in  a  natural  and  logical  order. 
This  makes  the  meaning  of  the  paragraph  difficult  to  de- 
termine.    The  following  is  an  example  of  this  error: 

"You  know  our  invariable  policy,  'If  anything  is  not  right, 
we  make  it  right.'  Surely  the  goods  were  perfectly  satisfactory, 
or  we  should  have  heard  from  you  before  this.  And  that  policy 
really  means  that  our  goods  are  right  in  the  first  place." 

Note  the  gain  in  clearness  when  the  sentences  are  ar- 
ranged in  the  proper  order: 

"Surely  the  goods  were  perfectly  satisfactory,  or  we  should 
have  heard  from  you  before  this  time.  You  know  our  invari- 
able policy,  'If  anything  is  not  right,  we  make  it  right.'  And 
that  policy  really  means  that  our  goods  are  right  in  the  first 
place." 

Careless  writers,  in  passing  from  one  sentence  to  another, 
are  also  likely  to  change  unnecessarily  from  one  subject  to 
another  —  thus : 

*A  successful  business  man  must  study  the  market.     You 
must  be  able  to  determine  when  prices  of  commodities  are  likely 
to  rise  or  fall." 
Of  course,  the  correct  form  is  as  follows: 

"A  successful  business  man  must  study  the  market.  He  must 
be  able  to  determine  when  prices  of  commodities  are  likely  to 
rise  or  fall." 

Again,  careless  writers  often  fail  to  use  connecting  words 
and  phrases.  They  forget  that  in  brief  writing,  such  as 
business  letters,  there  are  in  many  cases  wide  gaps  between 

173 


174  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

ideas  where  connectives  like  however,  therefore,  conse- 
quently, etc.  would  make  the  meaning  clearer.  Note  the 
lack  of  connectives  in  the  following  paragraph: 

"On  January  4  a  telegram  came  from  Mr.  Smith  concerning 
some  tires  that  had  been  returned.  I  went  to  the  factory.  I 
examined  them  carefully.  I  refused  to  accept  them.  They  had 
been  shipped  according  to  contract." 

But  compare  it  with  the  same  rewritten  with  the  neces- 
sary connectives  suppHed: 

"On  January  4  a  telegram  came  from  Mr.  Smith  concerning 
some  tires  that  had  been  returned.  I  therefore  went  to  the  fac- 
tory and  examined  them  carefully.  They  were  in  good  condi- 
tion, hut  I  did  not  accept  their  return  because  they  had  been 
shipped  according  to  contract." 

Clearness  in  the  paragraf)h  requires  that  the  foregoing 
errors  be  carefully  avoided.  The  following  rules  should 
therefore  be  observed: 

Rule  I.  The  sentences  should  he  arranged  in  natural  and 
logical  order. 

Clear  and  logical  thinking  will  do  more  than  anything 
else  to  insure  the  proper  arrangement  of  ideas.  Before 
beginning  to  write,  work  out  a  definite  plan  for  develop- 
ing the  topic.  There  are  a  few  plans  that  experienced 
writers  have  approved.     The  more  important  ones  follow: 

The  Narrative  Order.  In  telHng  about  a  business  trans- 
action, the  narrative  order,  of  course,  should  be  followed, 
as  you  would  follow  it  in  a  story.  This  means  nothing 
more  than  setting  forth  details  in  the  time  order  —  thus : 

"February  4  I  was  in  your  factory  and  ordered  a  shipment  of 
tires.    You  will  remember  that  you  promised  to  deliver  them 


CLEARNESS  IN  THE  PARAGRAPH  175 

in  ten  days.  Today  I  received  only  twenty-four  of  them.  It 
is  now  February  16  and  there  are  still  twenty-six  to  be  deliv- 
ered.   You  have,  therefore,  not  lived  up  to  your  contract." 

The  Descriptive  Order.  In  describing  an  article  offered 
for  sale  or  in  picturing  a  person  or  place,  you  follow  the 
so-called  descriptive  order  —  that  is,  you  mention  the  things 
together  that  stand  or  belong  near  each  other  in  space. 
Naturally  you  should  not  skip  about  or  change  your  point 
of  view.  First  give  a  general  impression  of  the  object  and 
follow  this  with  the  most  necessary  details  —  thus : 

"Our  sedan  is  a  comfortable,  roomy,  six-passenger  car  with 
the  rear  seat  as  wide  as  can  possibly  be  contrived  in  a  body 
which  is  hung  extremely  low  and  thus  is  between  the  rear 
wheels  rather  than  over  them.  The  front  seat  is  not  divided. 
Two  large,  comfortable,  well-upholstered  folding  seats  drop  into 
a  recess  back  of  the  front  seats.  The  body  is  unusually  strong; 
the  frame  is  constructed  principally  of  ash  with  very  heavy  door 
and  corner  posts  and  will  stand  the  shock  and  strain  incident  to 
driving  over  rough  roads.  Finally,  the  simple  lines  give  an  air 
of  elegance  without  any  suggestion  of  a  'boxy'  appearance." 

The  Argument  Order.  Although  the  descriptive  order 
is  followed  largely  in  picturing  articles  in  sales  letters  and 
advertisements,  business  is  concerned  chiefly  with  ex- 
planation and  argument.  In  this  case  the  order  of  presen- 
tation may  be  called  the  argument  order.  Here  are  several 
plans  of  development. 

I.  Statement  and  Illustration.  You  may  begin  with  a 
topic  sentence  stating  a  general  truth  and  then  follow  it 
with  a  concrete  example,  or  illustration  —  thus: 

"Progressive  companies  are  constantly  endeavoring  to  increase 
their  business.     There's  a  bank  here  in  Denver  —  not  much 


176  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

larger  than  yours  —  that  secured  over  a  thousand  new  deposit- 
ors in  December.  They  secured  them,  mind  you,  by  giving 
away  one  of  our  handsome  self-filling  fountain  pens  to  every 
person  opening  an  account.   You  can  do  the  same.  Try  it  now." 

2.  Statement  and  Figure  of  Speech.  You  may  introduce 
a  comparison  with  good  effect,  if  not  too  long  —  thus: 

"^  speedometer,  too,  is  important.  It  is  really  the  driver's 
time-table  —  indispensable  to  motor  travel." 

3.  Statement  and  Contrast.  Perhaps  a  contrast  may 
serve  equally  as  well  to  develop  your  general  statement: 

"Suburban  property  is  in  far  greater  demand  than  before  the 
days  of  automobile  transportation.  Formerly  the  advantages  of 
life  outside  the  cities  were  limited  to  the  efficiency  of  railway 
connections.  Now  the  automobile  owner  is  independent  of  every 
other  conveyance.  The  inconvenience  of  family  shopping  and 
getting  about  generally  no  longer  exists  —  in  any  season." 

4.  Effect  and  Cause.  Again,  in  your  topic  sentence  you 
may  state  an  effect.  In  this  case  you  will  proceed  by  men- 
tioning the  causes  —  thus: 

"  You  would  probably,  however,  have  had  very  much  the  same 
difficulties  with  any  other  firm  to  whom  you  had  given  the  work. 
As  you  may  have  noticed  by  the  papers,  practically  all  the 
printing  establishments  in  the  city  have  been  tied  up  for  the 
past  month  with  the  general  printers'  strike.  We  were,  therefore, 
compelled  temporarily  to  hire  unskilled  men,  who  were  unable 
to  do  the  work  so  rapidly  or  so  well  as  our  own  employees." 
—  The  B.  F.  Goodrich  Rubber  Co. 

5.  General  Statement  and  Detail.  In  all  of  the  foregoing 
examples  the  paragraph  begins  with  a  topic  sentence  or 
general  truth.    Another  plan  of  development,  however,  is 


CLEARNESS  IN  THE  PARAGRAPH  177 

the  direct  opposite  of  this.  In  following  this  you  begin 
with  a  statement  of  details  or  particulars  and  lead  up  to 
a  general  statement  or  conclusion  —  thus: 

"Immense  numbers  of  firms  are  now  using  Packard  equip- 
ment profitably.  New  orders  are  constantly  coming  in  from 
old  and  new  customers,  large  and  small,  who  have  found  that 
Packards  are  the  only  logical  solution  to  a  business  similar  to 
yours.  There  are  more  than  twenty-six  thousand  Packards  giv- 
ing day  in  and  day  out  service  in  every  line  of  endeavor  both  at 
home  and  abroad.  In  short,  there  is  every  indication  that  the 
Packard  trtick  has  won  a  place  for  itself." 

6.  Cause  and  Effect.  You  may  begin  by  stating  causes 
and  end  by  giving  the  effect  —  thus: 

"When  we  say  that  Packard  trucks  are  built,  we  mean  all 
that  that  word  implies.  Statistics  prove  that  built  trucks  out- 
live all  others  at  least  twice  over.  You  can  count  the  '  built ' 
trucks  on  the  fingers  of  one  hand.  Economy  is  built  into  every 
piece  of  the  Packard  product.  This  economy  is  what  you  buy. 
It  is  what  pays  you  dividends." 

Still  another  plan  of  developing  frequently  found  in  sales 
letters  requires  that  the  facts  be  arranged  in  the  order  of 
importance,  the  most  important  standing  at  the  last.  This 
arrangement  makes  a  sort  of  chmax  and,  therefore,  adds 
emphasis.     Note  the  following  example: 

"Packard  trucks  are  designed  and  built  to  fill  a  given  purpose. 
They  are  made  of  the  best  and  most  durable  materials.  Every 
part  has  been  tested  and  tried.  In  short,  they  are.  buUt  right,  from 
radiator  to  rear  bumper." 

Rule  II.  There  should  be  no  unnecessary  changes  of  the 
time  expressed  by  the  'verbs. 


178  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Note  carefully  the  error  in  the  following: 

"Then  the  customer  comes  into  the  House  and  orders  goods  for 
his  spring  trade.  After  this  he  spends  an  hour  with  us  in  the 
office  and  afterwards  went  out  for  an  automobile  ride." 

But  this  is  the  way  it  should  have  been  written: 

"Then  the  customer  came  into  the  House  and  ordered  goods 
for  his  spring  trade.  After  that  he  spent  an  hour  with  us  in  the 
office  and  finally  went  out  for  an  automobile  ride." 

Rule  III.     There  should  be  no  unnecessary  changes  oj 
subject. 
The  following  paragraph  illustrates  this  error: 

"A  salesman  should  thoroughly  understand  the  goods  he 
wishes  to  sell.  You  should  know  their  good  qualities  and  be  able 
to  describe  them.  Nobody  can  make  his  customer  want  the  ar- 
ticle unless  you  can  show  its  good  points." 

But  note  the  gain  in  clearness  when  properly  rewritten: 

"A  salesman  should  understand  thoroughly  the  goods  he 
wishes  to  sell.  He  should  know  their  good  qualities  and  be  able 
to  describe  them.  He  could  not  make  his  customer  want  the 
article  unless  he  could  show  its  good  points." 

Rule  IV.  Whenever  it  is  necessary  to  make  the  relation 
between  ideas  clearer j  connecting  words  and  phrases  should 
be  used. 

These  connectives  fall  into  well-defined  groups.  The 
first,  including  and,  also,  too,  moreover,  in  addition  to,  etc., 
is  used  when  moving  along  in  the  same  line  of  thought. 
The  second,  including  but,  still,  yet,  however,  neuertheless, 
in  spite  of,  etc.,  is  used  when  passing  to  an  idea  opposed 
to  what  has  been  mentioned.    The  third,  including  there- 


CLEARNESS  IN  THE  PARAGRAPH  179 

fore,  then,  so,  consequently,  hence,  etc.,  is  used  when  draw- 
ing a  conclusion.  With  the  exception  of  the  words  and  and 
but,  the  connectives  however,  therefore,  and  yet  are  most 
frequently  used  and  most  serviceable. 

Besides  these  connectives,  thus  and  that  are  frequently- 
used.  Sometimes  also  it  is  advisable  to  use  first  (not 
firstly),  second,  third,  etc.;  and  when  the  enumeration  is 
long,  it  is  better  to  make  a  paragraph  for  each  step,  begin- 
ning with  these  words. 

The  following  paragraph  shows  connecting  words  and 
phrases  correctly  used.  After  you  have  studied  it  care- 
fully, read  it  again,  omitting  the  connectives,  and  note  the 
result: 

"You  can  see,  therefore,  that  we  labored  under  great  diffi- 
culties in  turning  out  your  work.  In  addition  to  this  difficulty, 
the  mills  have  discontinued  making  paper  of  the  grade  you 
ordered.  In  order  not  to  increase  the  delay,  we  took  the  liberty 
of  substituting  in  place  of  it  a  more  expensive  grade.  No  doubt 
the  quality  will  partly  compensate  you  for  the  extra  postal  bills; 
however,  if  you  will  send  us  a  statement,  showing  the  extra 
charge,  we  shall  be  glad  to  deduct  that  from  the  face  of  the  bill. 
We  shall  also  be  glad  to  allow  you  a  discount  for  any  imperfect 
copies  which  you  may  return  to  us." 


LESSON  THIRTY-NINE 

Emphasis  in  the  Paragraph 

It  is  not  enough  that  the  paragraph  should  possess  unity 
and  coherence  —  it  must  also  possess  emphasis.  Your 
problem  is  not  merely  to  reveal  the  most  important  idea, 
or  point,  in  the  paragraph,  but  also  to  do  it  forcibly.  Should 
you  succeed,  you  will  compel  the  reader  to  remember  the 
thoughts  you  consider  most  important,  and  thus  you  will 
influence  his  behefs  or  move  him  to  action. 

Effective  writers  have  learned  that  emphasis  can  be  se- 
cured best  by  the  use  of  certain  devices.  Chief  among 
these  are  the  following: 

1.  Place  important  statements  first  or  last  in  the  para- 
graph. 

2.  Give  the  most  important  topic  the  greatest  space. 

3.  Present  most  important  ideas  in  specific  language  and 
attractive  phraseology. 

4.  Stress  important  statements  through  certain  typo- 
graphical devices,  such  as  setting  the  expression  in  full 
capitals,  underlining,  tabulating,  or  enlarging  space  be- 
tween letters. 

These  seem  indeed  simple,  but  ti^ey  can  be  more  easily 
understood  when  stated  in  the  form  of  rules  and  carefully 
explained  and  illustrated. 

Rule  I.  Place  important  statements  at  the  beginning  or 
end  of  the  paragraph. 

The  most  emphatic  positions  are  at  the  beginning  and 
the  end  of  the  paragraph.    Emphasis  may,  therefore,  be 

180 


/ 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE  PARAGRAPH  i8i 

secured  by  making  a  good  beginning.  This  may  be  done 
by  placing  the  topic  sentence  first  or  by  beginning  with  a 
statement  or  question  that  has  a  strong  personal  appeal. 

Note  the  emphasis  gained  by  beginning  the  following 
paragraph  with  a  topic  sentence: 

^^ Packard  trucks  are  built  to  give  you  a  service  that  will  preserve 
our  reputation.  Our  guarantee  specifically  calls  for  regular 
monthly  inspection  free  of  cost  to  you  for  one  year  from  date  of 
purchase.  We  watch  over  that  truck.  We  have  a  vital  interest 
in  it,  even  though  it  has  passed  into  other  hands;  for  it  is,  nev- 
ertheless, one  of  the  Packard  family  and  as  such  must  maintain 
the  Packard  reputation," 

In  the  next  example,  the  question  makes  an  equally 
effective  beginning: 

"Do  you  know  that  a  large  percentage  of  Packard  owners  started 
with  only  enough  money  to  make  an  initial  payment  on  their  first 
truck?  Today  they  are  fleet  owners,  operating  their  original 
purchase  together  with  several  others  which  that  first  truck  has 
helped  to  pay  for." 

Note  also  the  gain  by  tabulation  in  the  following: 

"Do  you  know  that  the  three  things  necessary  for  j>roper 
freight  transportation  by  motor  truck  are  — 
The  right  truck, 

Proper  installation  of  the  right  size. 
Proper  supervision  and  maintenance?  " 

An  attractive,  original  way  of  saying  the  first  sentence 
easily  secures  emphasis  —  thus : 

''No,  sir!  Trucks  will  NOT  eat  you  up,  if  you  buy  the  right 
kind  and  have  work  for  them  to  do.'' 


l82  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

Careful  writers  often  close  the  paragraph  with  the  most 
important  statement.  This  may  be  the  topic  sentence  or 
a  statement  summing  up  what  has  been  set  forth.  Again, 
it  may  be  the  most  important  one  of  a  series  of  thoughts 
arranged  in  the  order  of  climax.  To  place  it  in  the  middle 
of  the  paragraph  would  establish  an  anticlimax  —  a  move- 
ment from  the  most  important  thought  to  the  weakest. 
This  would  result  in  a  gradual  weakening  of  expression 
and  in  a  loss  of  interest.  The  reader  quite  naturally  con- 
cludes that  the  speaker  or  writer  has  no  more  of  real  value 
to  offer. 

Observe  the  following  example  in  which  emphasis  is 
secured  by  placing  the  topic  sentence  last: 

"Goodrich  Silvertown  Cords  cut  your  gasoline  bills  and  re- 
lieve your  motor.  They  coast  farther  and  climb  hills  more 
easily.  They  give  riding  comfort  and  add  to  the  good  looks  of 
your  car.  In  short,  they  fill  every  requirement  oj  the  exacting  mo- 
torist," 

A  similar  emphasis  is  secured  by  arranging  the  sentence 
in  the  order  of  climax.     Here  is  an  interesting  example: 

"You  see  with  a  Packard  truck  you  are  relieved  of  the  con- 
stant anxiety  attached  to  mediocre  equipment.  You  can  afford 
to  smile  at  the  other  fellow's  mishaps  while  your  own  sturdy 
Packard  goes  merrily  along  its  way,  pursuing  the  duties  you  lay 
out  for  it.  Forethought  has  made  you  master  of  the  situation. 
There  are  no  little  annoyances  —  no  serious  breakdowns  —  no 
tremendous  repair  bills.  The  Packard  truck  has  met  every  re- 
quirement.   No  task  is  too  hard  —  nothing  too  difficult." 

Rule  II.  Express  important  ideas  in  specific  language 
and  attractive  phraseology. 


EMPHASIS  IN  THE  PARAGRAPH  183 

Vague  general  terms  do  not  give  a  definite  picture  of  a 
thing  or  convey  accurate  information.  Such  expressions 
as  "  without  an  equal/'  "  the  best  in  the  world,"  "  a  re- 
markable value/'  "  excellent  quahty  for  the  price/'  etc., 
are  not  convincing.  Get  down  to  particulars  about  the 
thing  you  are  describing  or  the  proposition  you  are  ex- 
plaining. For  example,  if  you  are  selling  goods,  give  de- 
tails of  at  least  one  of  the  superior  features  of  your  mer- 
chandise. 

Suppose  the  Goodrich  Rubber  Company  had  described 
their  cord  tires  in  general  terms.  It  might  have  sounded 
like  this: 

"Goodrich  Cord  tires  are  without  doubt  the  most  popular  in 
the  country.  A  large  number  of  people  use  them  on  account  of 
their  many  good  qualities." 

But  they  actually  said: 

"Some  time  just  notice  how  many  cars  are  equipped  with 
Goodrich  Silvertown  Cord  tires.  It's  really  surprising  to  know 
how  popular  they  are.  And  there's  a  reason.  It's  because  they 
give  such  long,  carefree  service  that  they  are  the  choice  of  mo- 
torists." 

Express  your  ideas  in  attractive  language.  Make  an  ef- 
fort to  be  original.  Think  of  the  usual  way  of  saying  a 
thing,  then  tell  it  differently.  Note  the  following  examples 
written  in  the  same  old  way: 

"Although  the  initial  cost  of  our  truck  is  more,  many  corpo- 
rations buy  of  us.  If  they  get  a  satisfactory  return  for  what 
they  spend,  any  person  can  do  the  same." 

Compare  with  this: 

"No,  sir!  The  Packard  truck  is  not  a  corporation  truck 
alone.    Corporations,  no  matter  how  wealthy,  are  not  given  to 


1 84  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

bujdng  anything  unless  they  secure  adequate  return  for  all 
they  expend.  Remember  —  the  Packard  truck  is  every  man'd 
truck." 

A  dealer  in  men's  clothing  recently  issued  an  ad  containing 
this  paragraph  which  is  couched  in  vague  general  terms: 

"We  have  positively  the  best  men's  suits  on  the  market. 
They  are  all  wool  and  hand-tailored.    There  are  many  models." 

This  is  all  true  enough,  but  it  is  not  convincing.  Here 
is  what  it  should  be: 

"If  you  demand  real  style,  here  is  the  suit  for  you.  Our  suits 
are  made  of  all-wool  materials,  in  the  season's  popular  patterns 
and  colorings.  We  have  snappy  up-to-the-minute  styles,  in  both 
single-breasted  and  double-breasted  models,  and  every  suit  is 
hand-tailored  to  the  very  last  stitch.  We  have  models  ranging 
from  the  most  extreme  to  the  most  conservative.  If  you  want 
to  look  your  best  Easter  and  thereafter,  select  your  suit  from 
this  choice  group." 

The  foregoing  examples  will  doubtless  be  sufficient  to 
show  that  it  is  not  enough  merely  to  state  facts  in  a  vague 
sort  of  way.  Ideas  that  are  worth  expressing  at  all  should 
be  stated  in  specific  and  attractive  language. 

Rule  III.  In  each  paragraph  give  space  to  your  ideas 
in  proportion  to  their  importance. 

The  following  example  shows  a  violation  of  this  rule: 

"I  left  Chicago  on  the  midnight  train,  day  before  yesterday, 
and  after  changing  cars  at  Indianapolis  in  the  morning,  I  went 
to  Cincinnati,  where  I  arrived  the  following  noon  just  in  time 
to  find  that  you  had  gone  from  the  office  for  the  day,  as  I 
learned  that  you  often  are,  and  could  not  be  located  either  by 
me  or  by  any  of  our  clients  no  matter  how  important  the  busi- 
ness. Under  the  circumstances,  I  find  it  necessary  to  ask  for 
your  resignation." 


EMPHASIS   IN  THE  PARAGRAPH  185 

But  note  the  gain  in  emphasis  when  the  paragraph  is 
revised  to  give  space  to  ideas  in  proportion  to  their  im- 
portance : 

"I  arrived  in  Cincinnati  yesterday  noon,  after  a  hard  day's 
travel,  and  found  that  you  were  gone  from  the  office  for  the  day 
and  could  not  be  located  either  by  me  or  any  of  our  clients,  no 
matter  how  important  the  business.  I  learned  that  you  often 
do  this  —  a  thing  that  I  cannot  even  begin  to  understand;  for 
if  an  important  client  should  need  you  at  such  times  and  be 
unable  to  find  you,  we  should  probably  lose  his  business  alto- 
gether. I  have  little  doubt  that  we  have  lost  considerable  busi- 
ness in  this  way.  Under  the  circumstances,  I  find  it  necessary 
to  ask  you  for  your  resignation." 

You  will  observe  that  in  the  original,  the  writer  used 
most  of  his  space  in  describing  his  own  hard  trip  —  which 
was  important  to  him,  but  not  the  important  idea  of  his 
paragraph.  In  the  revised  paragraph,  this  is  abbreviated 
and  the  proper  proportion  of  space  is  given  to  the  central 
idea. 

Rule  IV.  Emphasis  may  he  secured  through  the  use  of 
certain  typographical  means  of  display. 

These  include  the  use  of  capitals,  underlining,  tabulating, 
unusual  spacing,  and  the  use  of  the  dash.  They  are  used 
very  frequently  in  sales  letters  and  advertisements,  but 
should  be  employed  sparingly  elsewhere. 


LESSON  FORTY 

The  Whole  Composition 

The  whole  composition  usually  consists  of  a  series  of 
related  paragraphs,  each  contributing  toward  the  develop- 
ment of  a  single  subject.  In  the  business  world  the  form 
of  composition  generally  required  is  the  letter. 

Throughout  this  book  the  language  and  subject-matter 
of  business  correspondence  has  been  used.  Letter  writing 
as  such,  however,  is  to  be  studied  in  the  letter-writing  text 
for  which  this  is  the  base. 

A  word  concerning  the  importance  of  this  study  will, 
therefore,  be  instructive.  By  almost  every  concern  not 
purely  local,  business  is  carried  on  chiefly  by  correspond- 
ence, and  employers  are  ever  alert  to  find  those  who  can 
write  effective  letters  —  letters  that  win.  And  what  is  more, " 
they  are  willing  to  pay  good  salaries.  Recently,  a  large 
wholesale  company  granted  the  members  of  its  adjustment 
and  collection  departments  very  substantial  increases  in 
pay  at  a  time  when  it  was  lowering  the  salaries  of  other 
employees.  This  clearly  indicates  that  a  knowledge  of 
letter  writing  insures  a  better  salary. 

If  you  master  the  science  of  letter  writing,  not  only  will 
you  receive  a  higher  salary,  but  also  you  will  have  better 
opportunities  for  advancement.  You  will  be  promoted  to  a 
position  of  confidence  and  responsibihty,  where  you  will 
have  an  opportunity  to  learn  the  *'  inside ''  of  a  business. 
This  is,  indeed,  one  of  the  highest  rewards. 

Moreover,  you  will  find  a  knowledge  of  letter  writing 
valuable  in  any  line  of  work.     It  is  impossible  to  conceive 

i86 


THE  WHOLE   COMPOSITION  187 

of  any  business  where  there  is  not  at  least  some  need  of 
correspondence;  and  if  letters  are  to  be  written  at  all, 
they  should  be  written  effectively. 

The  scientific  study  of  letter  writing  is  not  only  possible 
but  in  these  days  absolutely  necessary.  Take,  for  example, 
the  sales  letter.  Millions  of  dollars'  worth  of  goods  are 
sold  each  year  by  this  means  alone.  It  is  therefore  impor- 
tant that  such  letters  should  be  written  according  to  a  plan. 
Salesmanship  students  have  worked  out  a  series  of  steps  — 
audience,  attention,  interest,  desire,  and  action  —  and 
every  one  of  these  should  be  provided  for  in  the  sales 
talk.  Likewise  they  should  be  provided  for  in  the  sales 
letter. 

As  far  as  possible  in  the  letter-writing  text,  the  project 
method  will  be  used.  You  will  be  assigned  a  business  and 
directed,  as  its  correspondent,  to  write  the  various  types 
of  letters  that  naturally  arise  in  different  situations.  This 
will  not  only  be  interesting  but  serve  to  increase  your 
knowledge  of  business  as  well. 

We  have  endeavored,  in  this  text  on  business  English, 
to  lay  a  proper  foundation  for  the  study  of  letter  writing; 
and  will  conclude  with  a  discussion  of  the  principles  of 
unity,  clearness,  and  emphasis.  We  have  already  applied 
them  to  the  word,  the  sentence,  and  the  paragraph.  They 
will  now  be  so  treated  as  to  apply  to  the  complete  com- 
position whether  letter,  circular,  report,  or  advertisement. 

Unity.  Unity  in  the  whole  composition  requires  that 
there  should  be  only  one  central  idea.  Everything  that 
does  not  help  to  develop  this  should,  therefore,  be  rigidly 
excluded. 


1 88  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

On  the  other  hand,  important  details  must  not  be  omitted. 
Thousands  of  order  letters  have  to  be  returned  every  day 
for  further  particulars  —  such  as,  size,  catalogue  numbers, 
etc. 

To  secure  unity,  always  state  clearly  the  central  idea  — 
thus: 

1.  The  Packard  truck  will  save  you  money  on  your  delivery 

service. 

2.  There  was  a  mistake  in  my  order  of  men's  shoes. 

3.  The  after  expense  of  the  Packard  truck  is  not  so  great  as 

that  of  a  cheaper  one. 

4.  A  business  education  is  valuable  in  many  ways. 

To  aid  further  in  securing  unity,  you  should  prepare  an 
outhne.  Making  up  the  outline,  of  course,  presupposes 
that  you  have  secured  the  materials  for  writing  —  that  is, 
ideas  from  experience,  books,  your  own  thoughts  on  the 
subject,  etc.  Having  the  materials  assembled,  arrange 
your  topics  logically,  excluding  entirely  any  that  do  not 
belong  to  the  central  idea. 

Suppose,  for  example,  that  a  salesman  of  the  Packard 
Motor  Company  wishes  to  prepare  a  sales  argument  for 
letter,  circular,  or  advertisement,  having  the  following 
central  idea :  The  after  expense  of  a  Packard  truck  is  much 
less  than  that  of  a  cheaper  one.  He  will  make  a  list  of 
points  that  he  beheves  will  develop  the  idea  —  thus: 

1.  The  right  kind  of  truck  will  not  be  expensive. 

2.  The  first  cost  is  the  least  consideration. 

3.  A  truck  will  increase  the  efficiency  of  your  pick-up  and  de- 

hvery  service  twofold. 

4.  Buying  a  good  truck  is  like  making  a  safe  investment. 

5.  Our  price  is  high  enough  to  enable  us  to  produce  a  good  truck. 


THE  WHOLE   COMPOSITION  189 

6.  A  Packard  gives  efficient  service. 

7.  You  should  go  over  the  figures  with  our  representatives. 

But  after  listing  his  points  he  will  go  over  them  care- 
fully to  see  whether  there  are  any  that  should  be  omitted. 
A  second  thought  will  reveal  the  fact  that  the  third  topic 
does  not  belong  to  the  central  idea  and  that  the  sixth  is 
too  general.  He  will,  therefore,  revise  his  outline,  leaving 
them  out  entirely  —  thus : 

The  after  expense  of  a  Packard  truck  is  much  less  than  that  of 
a  cheaper  one. 

1.  The  right  kind  of  truck  will  not  be  expensive. 

2.  The  first  cost  is  the  least  consideration. 

3.  Buying  a  good  truck  is  like  making  a  safe  investment. 

4.  Our  price  is  high  enough  to  enable  us  to  produce  a  good 

truck. 

5.  You  should  go  over  the  figures  with  our  representative. 

And  here  is  how  the  finished  composition  will  actually 
look.     Note  the  complete  unity  of  the  work  as  a  whole: 

"No,  sir!  Trucks  will  NOT  eat  you  up,  if  you  buy  the  right 
kind  of  trucks  and  have  work  for  them  to  do. 

"First  cost  is  really  your  least  consideration.  It  is  the  after 
expense  that  must  be  closely  scrutinized  before  you  pass  final 
judgment. 

"If  it  came  to  a  question  of  bonds,  which  would  you  choose 
—  a  U.  S.  Liberty  4^^  with  the  resources  of  Uncle  Sam  back  of 
it,  or  an  oil  stock  guaranteed  to  pay  30%  with  nothing  back  of 
it  but  the  guarantee? 

"One  is  founded  on  the  stability  of  a  nation.  You  know  its 
value.  The  other  is  the  loo-to-i  shot.  One  represents  a  known 
quantity;  the  other  is  the  '  x '  in  your  equation. 

"Packard  trucks  are  priced  at  a  figure  which  permits  the  na- 
tion's greatest  producer  of  high-grade  commercial  vehicles  to 


190  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

manufacture  a  GOOD  TRUCK.  That  price  protects  you 
against  excessive  after  cost.  It  is  your  guarantee  of  continual 
and  efficient  truck  operation.  Its  economy  becomes  more  pro- 
nounced day  after  day.  Your  truck  is  running  smoothly  and 
willingly  long  after  the  30%  proposition  has  gone  into  the  dis- 
card. Its  earning  power  is  almost  unhmited,  if  it  is  given  average 
care  and  attention. 

"Don't  you  want  to  go  into  the  facts  and  figures  with  a  rep- 
resentative of  our  company?  It  will  mean  dollars  in  your 
pocket.    When  shall  we  have  him  call?" 

Clearness.  Much  that  has  already  been  said  of  clear- 
ness in  the  paragraph  applies  equally  to  the  entire  com- 
position. The  parts  should  follow  one  another  in  logical 
order,  and  the  relation  of  ideas  should  be  made  clear  by 
the  use  of  connecting  words  and  phrases. 

In  narrative  compositions,  such  as  a  complaint  letter  or 
a  report  of  a  business  meeting,  the  problem  of  arrange- 
ment is  simple.  Merely  follow  the  time  order.  Also  in 
descriptive  work,  such  as  circulars  or  booklets  picturing 
articles  for  sale,  you  have  only  to  follow  the  so-called  space 
order  —  that  is,  you  present  your  details  in  the  order  in 
which  they  occur  in  space.  Explanations  of  processes, 
giving  directions,  etc.,  follow  the  time  order,  while  others 
begin  with  a  statement  of  causes  and  end  with  the  effect. 

However,  in  most  business  writing  the  order  of  devel- 
opment is  determined  largely  from  the  point  of  view  of 
the  customer.  Remember  that  his  situation,  his  needs, 
his  moods,  and  even  his  hobbies  must  be  considered.  All 
letters  should  at  least  begin  with  his  point  of  view  —  a 
reference  to  the  previous  letter  and  its  content.  Then  if 
desirable,  as  in  the  case  of  an  adjustment  letter,  you  may 


THE  WHOLE   COMPOSITION  Igt 

conclude  by  bringing  the  customer  around  to  your  own 
point  of  view.  But  the  sales  letter  should  be  written 
wholly  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  customer. 

As  an  aid  to  securing  clearness,  nothing  else  is  quite  so 
helpful  as  making  an  outline.  First,  state  clearly  your  cen- 
tral idea  and,  then,  make  a  hst  of  subordinate  points. 
Then  rearrange  your  outline,  so  that  the  parts  will  be  in 
the  correct  order. 

Suppose,  for  example,  a  representative  of  the  Packard 
Motor  Company  wishes  to  prepare  an  ad  for  the  Saturday 
Evening  Post,  having  the  following  central  idea :  The  traffic 
superintendent  who  recommends  a  Packard  truck  to  his  chief 
can  always  justify  his  choice.  His  first  outHne  would  ap- 
pear somewhat  like  this: 

The  traffic  superintendent  who  recommends  a  Packard  truck  to 
his  chief  can  always  justify  his  choice. 

1.  The  record  made  by  the  heavy-duty  Packard  of  The  Stearns 

Lime  and  Cement  Company  is  a  typical  example  of  the 
Packard's  capacity. 

2.  The  operating  records  will  prove  the  soundness  of  his  judg- 

ment. 

3.  The  Packard  truck  has  the  benefit  of  country-wide  service 

facilities. 

4.  Only  in  another  Packard  can  be  found  equal  power  and  econ- 

omy. 

5.  The  Packard's  ability  measured  by  tons  carried,  miles  trav- 

eled, and  years  of  working  life  is  the  final  standard  of  truck 
performance. 

Looking  at  the  outHne  further,  he  will  discover  that  his 
points  need  to  be  rearranged.  He  will  probably  make  his 
most  general  statements  stand  first  and  follow  these  with 


192  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

the  more  specific  points  about  the  truck's  abihty  to  do 
hauling.  Then,  logically,  he  will  introduce  the  particular 
example  of  the  Packard's  capacity  as  shown  by  the  heavy- 
duty  truck  of  The  Stearns  Lime  and  Cement  Company. 
The  outhne  will  then  appear  as  follows: 

The  traffic  superintendent  who  recommends  a  Packard  truck  to 
his  chief  can  always  justify  his  choice. 

1.  The  operating  records  will  prove  the  soundness  of  his  judg- 

ment. 

2.  The  Packard's  ability  measured  by  tons  carried,  miles  trav- 

eled, and  years  of  working  life  is  the  final  standard  of  truck 
performance. 

3.  Only  in  another  Packard  can  be  found  equal  power  and  econ- 

omy. 

4.  The  record  made  by  the  heavy-duty  Packard  of  The  Stearns 

Lime  and  Cement  Company  is  a  typical  example  of  the 
Packard's  capacity. 

5.  The  Packard  truck  has  the  advantage  of  country- wide  serv- 

ice facilities. 

And  this  is  the  finished  composition.     Note  how  clear 
and  convincing  it  is: 

"The  traffic  superintendent  who  recommends  a  Packard  truck  to 
his  chief  can  always  justify  his  choice.  In  its  first  day  of  service, 
or  at  the  end  of  ten  years,  the  operating  records  of  the  Packard 
will  prove  the  soundness  of  his  judgment. 

"Measured  by  tons  carried,  miles  traveled,  or  years  of  work- 
ing life,  the  Packard's  ability  to  do  better  hauling  at  lower  cost 
is  the  final  standard  of  truck  performance. 

"  Only  in  another  Packard  can  be  found  equal  power  and  econ- 
omy, for  Packard  efficiency  is  the  product  of  tested  design,  se- 
lected materials,  expert  manufacture,  and  the  Packard  method 
of  rating  the  truck  to  its  work. 


THE  WHOLE   COMPOSITION  193 

"A  typical  example  of  the  Packard's  capacity  is  furnished  by 
The  Stearns  Lime  and  Cement  Company  of  Chicago,  whose 
heavy-duty  Packard  in  a  single  year  covered  more  than  36  miles 
a  day  for  301  working  days,  carrying  an  average  load  of  7.7 
tons,  a  total  of  10,836  miles  and  14,800  tons. 

"In  delivering  such  performances  through  year  after  year, 
every  Packard  truck  has  the  benefit  of  country-wide  service 
facihties  established  to  keep  it  fit  and  in  working  trim." 

Emphasis.  Emphasis  in  the  composition  as  a  whole 
depends  upon  the  position  of  ideas  and  the  amount  of 
space  devoted  to  them.  Since  most  business  writing  is 
made  as  brief  as  possible,  you  will  not  need  to  give  the 
question  of  the  amount  of  space  much  consideration.  The 
position  of  ideas  in  the  composition  is,  however,  of  the 
greatest  importance.  As  in  the  case  of  the  paragraph, 
the  beginning  and  the  end  are  the  places  of  greatest 
emphasis. 

Place  an  important  point  at  the  beginning  to  attract  at- 
tention. The  writers  of  sales  letters  use  this  device  con- 
stantly, and  to  add  to  the  emphasis,  they  frequently  type 
such  sentences,  or  parts  of  them  in  full  capitals.  Some- 
times a  question  makes  quite  the  most  effective  opening  — 
thus: 

"What  has  kept  you  from  placing  your  order  for  a  PACK- 
ARD TRUCK?" 

The  most  emphatic  position  in  the  entire  composition  is 
at  the  end.  Place  your  most  important  point  last,  there- 
fore, and  it  will  likely  be  remembered  more  easily.  Often 
such  statements,  or  parts  of  them,  are  typed  in  full  capi- 


194  ACTUAL  BUSINESS  ENGLISH 

tals.     This  is  particularly  true  of  sales  letters.    The  fol- 
lowing is  an  example  of  this  device  for  securing  emphasis: 

"Remember  —  THE  PACKARD  TRUCK  IS  EVERY 
MAN'S  TRUCK.    When  are  you  going  to  have  yours?" 

The  following  example  shows  how  effectively  emphasis 
may  be  secured  by  placing  important  statements  at  the 
beginning  and  the  end.  Note  that  the  opening  sentence 
wins  attention  by  giving  an  important  proof,  and  the  last 
one  incites  the  reader  to  action: 

"Our  government  bought  on  'record  of  past  performance^  when 
they  placed  their  order  for  4800  Packard  trucks  at  one  time.  The 
Expeditionary  force  into  Mexico  proved  their  fitness  for  any 
task,  and  when  we  entered  the  World  War,  Packards  received 
the  first  call. 

"You  see  that  with  a  Packard  truck  you  are  relieved  of  the 
constant  anxiety  attached  to  mediocre  equipment.  You  can 
afltord  to  smile  at  the  other  fellow's  mishaps  while  your  own 
sturdy  Packard  goes  merrily  along  its  way,  pursuing  the  duties 
you  lay  out  for  it.  Forethought  has  made  you  master  of  the 
situation.  No  task  is  too  hard  —  nothing  too  difficult.  It  has 
power  to  spare  and  style  that  causes  your  prestige  to  go  up  a 
notch. 

"It  is  surprising  how  much  of  the  mechanism  requires  a  great 
deal  of  'letting  alone.'  Your  driver  can,  therefore,  save  time. 
He  will  be  worth  more  to  you  on  a  Packard  truck,  for  he  takes 
pride  in  the  thoroughbred  that  is  his  to  handle.  He  takes  pleas- 
ure in  seeing  how  much  work  he  can  get  out  of  it,  and  the  effi- 
ciency of  both  is  increased  twofold. 

"I  have  given  some  thought  to  your  trucking  problem.  To 
my  mind  a  (size)  Packard  will  serve  you  admirably.  It  is  a 
buy  you  cannot  well  afford  to  be  without.  An  order  placed 
now  should  get  you  this  model  for  immediate  delivery.  You 


THE  WHOLE   COMPOSITION  IQS 

will  marvel  at  its  performance  and  wonder  how  you  managed 
before  you  got  it. 
*^Just  telephone  —  and  I  will  he  right  over  with  a  contract.^* 

You  have  now  studied  the  word,  the  sentence,  the  para- 
graph, and  the  whole  composition,  and  you  have,  no  doubt, 
learned  to  place  a  new  value  on  correct  English  usage  both 
in  oral  and  in  written  speech.  You  have  also  learned  that 
the  sentence,  paragraph,  and  composition  must  not  only  be 
correct  in  language  but  also  possess  unity,  clearness,  and 
emphasis.  Having  mastered  these  essential  principles,  you 
should  be  ready  for  the  important  study  of  letter  writing 
that  is  to  follow. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Bartholomew  and  Hurlbut:  The  Business  Man's  English. 
Baskerville  and  Sewell:   A  School  Grammar  of  the  English  Lan- 
guage. 
Belding,  Albert  G.:  Commercial  Correspondence. 
Campbell  and  Vass  :  Essentials  of  Business  English. 
Carpenter:  Principles  of  English  Grammar. 
Cody,  Sherwin:  How  to  Do  Business  by  Letter. 

How  to  Deal  with  Human  Nature  in  Business. 

How  to  Be  a  Private  Secretary. 
Earnest,  W.  W.  :  English  Correspondence. 
Gallagher  and  Moulton:  Practical  Business  English. 
Hammond  and  Herzberg:  Style  Book  of  Business  English. 
Hatfield,  Wilbur:  Business  English  Projects. 
Hitchcock,  Alfred  M.:  New  Practice  Book. 
Herrick  and  Damon:  New  Composition  and  Rhetoric. 
Hotchkiss  and  Drew:  Business  English. 
Lewis  and  Hosic:  Practical  English  for  High  Schools. 
LooMis,  Henry  T.  :  New  Practical  Letter  Writing. 
LovELL,  A.  E.:  Punctuation  as  a  Means  of  Expression. 
McLean,  Blaisdell,  and  Morrow:  Steps  in  English^  Book  II. 
Manly  and  Bailey:  Lessons  in  English,  Book  II. 
Newcomer  and  Seward  :  Rhetoric  in  Practice. 
Opdycke  and  Drew:  Commercial  Letters. 
Read,  Harlan  Eugene:  Salesmanship. 
Schoch  and  Gross:  Elements  of  Business. 
Scott,  Angelo  C.  :  Practical  English. 
Teller  and  Brown:  A  First  Book  in  Business. 
Ward,  C.  H.:  Sentence  and  Theme. 

197 


1 98  BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Webster,  Edward  Harlan:  English  for  Business. 
Williams,  B.  F.:  A  Brief  Course  in  Business  English. 
Wood,  Thomas:  Practical  Grammar  and  Composition. 
Wood,  George  McLane:  Extracts  from  the  Style  Book  of  the  Govern- 
ment Printing  Office 


INDEX 


Abbreviations,  137-140 

Names  of  states,  138;  names  of 
the  months,  139;  commercial, 
139-140 

Ability,  capacity,  14 

Abundance,  51 

Accordingly,  119 

Adjectival  clause,  loi 

Adjective,  2 

Adjectives  and  adverbs,  62-86 

Admittance,  admission,  15 

Adverb,  3;  interrogative  adverbs,  3 

Adverbial  clause,  102 

Advise,  153 

Advise,  inform,  56 

Affect,  effect,  56-57 

Aggravate,  irritate,  exasperate,  59- 
60 

Agreeable,  nice,  84 

Agreement,  49-55 

All  ready,  already,  73 

All  right,  73 

Almost,  most,  72 

Also,  50,  03,  178 

And,  93,  III,  119,  143,  144,  178 

And  also,  29 

Angry,  mad,  82 

Anybody,  28 

Anyone,  28 

A  person,  28 

Apt,  likely,  liable,  84-85 

Argument  order,  175-177 

Statement  and  illustration,  175- 
176;  statement  and  figure  of 
speech,  176;  statement  and  con- 
trast, 176;  effect  and  cause, 
176;  general  statement  and 
detail,  176-177;  cause  and 
effect,  177 


Articles,  62 

As,  21,  94 

As  —  as,  78,  92 

As  follows,  120 

As  if,  21,  94 

As  well  as,  29,  50 

At  hand,  etc.,  153 

At  last,  119 

At  least,  119 

Audience,  spectators,  15 

Bad,  badly,  72-73 

Balance,  rest,  remainder,  15-16 

Be,  24-25 

Beg  to  say,  etc.,  153 

Bills,  127-128 

But,  II,  93,  104,  119,  143,  144,  178 

Calculate,  intend,  57 
Capacity,  ability,  14 
Capitalization,  132-136 
Abbreviations,       135;      in    sales 
letters,  135-136 
Checks,  127 
Clause,  defined,  6;  classes,  6,   loi- 

103 

Clearness,  sentence,  147-151 
Paragraph,  173-179;  whole  com- 
position, 190-193 

Colon,  1 20-1 2 1 

Comma,  109-118 
Omission  of  words,  109;  com- 
pound sentence,  iii;  subordi- 
nate clause,  112;  introductory 
participial  phrase,  113;  modify- 
ing clauses,  114;  words  of 
address,  116;  words  in  apposi- 
tion, 116;  parenthetical  expres- 
sions,   116;     intermediate    ex- 


199 


200 


INDEX 


pressions,  117;  words  or  phrases 
contrasted,  118;  short  quota- 
tions, 118 

Communication,  letter,  16 

Comparative  degree,  75 

Comparison,  75-78 

Complex  sentence,  101-103 

Complimentary  close,  126 

Compound  adjective,  64-66 

Compound  nouns,  8,  12 

Compound  object,  20 

Compound  predicate,  100 

Compound  pronouns,  2,  26-29 

Compound  sentence,  104-106 

Compound  subject,  19-20,  100 

Conjunction,  3;  how  to  use  correctly, 
93-96 

Consequently,  119,  179 

Continual,  continuous,  79 

Council,  counsel,  16 

Dash,  1 21-123 

Explanatory       expressions,    122; 

parenthetical  expressions,  122; 

summarizing  phrase  or  clause, 

122-123 
Demonstrative  pronoun,  2 
Dependent  clause,  6 
Descriptive  adjective,  3 
Descriptive  order,  175 
Discommode,  incommode,  57 
Discover,  invent,  57-58 
Doesn't  and  don't,  54 
Double  negative,  67-69 
Dozen,  9 
Drafts,  129 

Each,  28 

Effect,  affect,  56-57 

Either,  28 

Either  — or,  93,  94,  i44 

Emphasis,  sentence,  15  2-1 61 

Paragraph,  180-185;  whole  com- 
position, 193-195 
Envelope  addressing,  125 
Esteemed  favor,  153 
Every,  28 


Everybody,  28 

Everyone,  28 

Exasperate,  irritate,  aggravate,  59- 

60 
Except,  without,  unless,  95 
Exclamation  point,  109 
Expect,  suspect,  guess,  58 

Few,  less,  79-80 
Figures,  8 

First,  second,  third,  179 
Fix,  mend,  60 
Foreign  plurals,  9-10 
For  example,  120 
For  illustration,  120 
For  instance,  120 

Gerund,  4 

Goods,  9 

Graduate,  was  graduated,  58-59 

Grand,  splendid,  80-81 

Guess,  expect,  suspect,  58 

Hardly,  scarcely,  81 
Healthy,  healthful,  81-82 
Hence,  119,  179 
However,  178 
How  to  express  numbers,  131 

Implicate,  involve,  59 
In  addition  to,  50,  93,  178 
Incommode,  discommode,  57 
Indeed,  119 
Indefinite  pronouns,  2 
In  fact,  119 
Infinitive,  4 
Inform,  advise,  56 
Inside  address,  1 26 
Inst.,  ult.,  and  prox.,  153 
Intend,  calculate,  57 
Interrogative  adverb,  3 
Interrogative  pronoun,  2 
Invent,  discover,  57-58 
Irritate,  aggravate,  exasperate,  59- 
60 

Latter  and  former,  77 
Lay,  lie,  40-42 


INDEX 


20I 


Learn,  teach,  60 

Leave,  let,  42 

Letter,  8;  headings,  126 

Letter,  communication,  16 

Liable,  likely,  apt,  84-85 

Like,  21,  94 

Limiting  adjective,  2 

Mad,  angry,  82 
Mend,  fix,  60 
Moreover,  93,  178 
Most,  ahnost,  72 

Narrative  order,  174-175 

Near,  nearly,  72 

Negative,  67-69 

Neglect,  negligence,  16-17 

Neither,  28,  93,  104,  in,  119 

Neither  —  nor,  93,  144 

Nevertheless,  119,  178 

Nice,  agreeable,  84 

Nobody,  28 

Nominative  forms,  19-20 

None,  28 

Nor,  93,  104,  III,  119 

Notes,  129 

Not  only  —  but  also,  93-94 

Noun,  I 

Noun  clause,  102-103 

Nouns  commonly  confused,  14-18 

Nowhere,  nowheres,  82 

Number,  7-10 

Object,  3;  defined,  5-6 

Of  course,  119 

Or,  93,  104,  III,  119,  144 

Paragraph,  162-185 

Defined,     162;     topic     sentence, 

162-163;  single-sentence,  163 
Narrative,    164-165;    descriptive, 

165;     short,     165-166;     unity, 

169-172;     clearness,     173-179; 

emphasis,  180-185 
Participle,  4 
Party,  person,  17 
Past  participle,  34-37 


Past  tense,  34 
Period,  107-108 
Periodic  sentence,  159-160 
Persona]  pronouns,  2,  19-25 
Phrase,  defined,  6 
Plenty,  51 

Plurals,  formation  of,  7-10 
Point  of  view,  171 
Politeness,  rule  of,  20 
Positive  degree,  75 
Possessive,  formation  of,  1 1-13 
Predicate,  5 
Preposition,  3,  87-92 
Present  tense,  34 
Previous,  previously,  72 
Principal  clause,  6,  loi 
Principal  parts,  34-37 
Pronoun,  2,  19-33 
Compound,   26-29;  relative,  30- 

33 

Propose,  purpose,  60-61 

Prox.,  inst.,  ult.,  153 

Punctuation,  107-130 

Parts  of  a  letter,  125-127;  com- 
mercial forms,  127-129;  how  to 
express  numbers,  130-13 1 

Question  mark,  108-109 
Quotation  marks,  123-124 

Raise,  40-42 
Real,  very,  82-83 
Receipts,  128-129 
Recent  date,  154 
Reciprocal  pronouns,  2 
Relations,  relatives,  18 
Relative  pronouns,  2,  30-33 
Remainder,  15-16 
Repetition,  156 
Respectfully,  respectively,  83 
Rest,  balance,  remainder,  15-16 
Rise,  40-42 

Said,  154 
Salutation,  8,  121 
Same,  154 
Scarcely,  hardly,  81 


202 


INDEX 


Score,  9 

Semicolon,  1 19-120 

Sentence,  5 

Simple,  97-100;  complex,  loi- 
103;  compound,  104-106;  peri- 
odic, 159-160;  unity  of,  141- 
146;  clearness  in,  147-151; 
emphasis  in,  15  2-1 61 

Set,  sit,  40-42 

Shall  and  will,  45-48 

Should  and  would,  47-48 

So,  179 

So  —  as,  78,  93 

Some,  somewhat,  83-84 

Somebody,  28 

Someone,  28 

Spectators,  audience,  15 

Splendid,  grand,  80-81 

Statue,  statute,  18 

Still,  178 

Subject,  5,  19-20 

Superlative  degree,  75 

Suspect,  expect,  guess,  58 

Teach,  learn,  60 
Tense,  34-38 
Than,  21,  30 
That,  30,  179 
Therefore,  179 
This  and  that,  63-64 


Though  —  yet,  93-94 
Together  with,  29 
Topic  sentence,  162-163 

Ult.,  prox.,  inst.,  153 
Unity,  sentence,  141-146 

Paragraph,  161-172;  whole  com- 
position, 187-190 
Unless,  without,  except,  95 

Variety,  51 
Verb,  2,  34-61 
Verbals,  4 
Very,  real,  82-83 

Were,  special  use  of,  43-44 

What,  30 

Whether  —  or,  93-94 

Which,  30 

Who,  whose,  whom,  30 

Whoever,  whomever,  30-33 

Whole  composition,  186-195 

Will  and  shall,  45-48 

Without,  except,  unless,  95 

Worn-out  expressions,  152-154 

Would  and  should,  47-48 

Yet,  119,  178 
Yoke,  9 
Yours,  15s 


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